


Fly On The Wall

by King_Of_Trash



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: A Lot of Death, Angst, Blindness, Characters may be out of character on purpose, Dark Oikawa, Dark Royalty AU, Death, Forbidden Love, Implied/Referenced Underage Prostitution, Jealousy, King Oikawa Tooru, King Ushijima Wakatoshi, Knights - Freeform, M/M, Major character death - Freeform, Minor Character Death, Minor Injuries, More pairings and character tags will be added, Possible mentions of rape but nothing serious, Pride, Puppies, Resistance, Revenge, Serious Injuries, This is a dark AU remember, This is giving me stress just writing it, Unrequited Love, Werewolves, Witches, dark characters, it's really stressful, kings - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-08
Updated: 2017-09-12
Packaged: 2018-09-22 19:05:28
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 8
Words: 21,815
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9621470
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/King_Of_Trash/pseuds/King_Of_Trash
Summary: King Oikawa is seen as a cruel king who only cares for himself. He can only trust one person, and that person is his trusted knight, Iwaizumi. However, when that trust is tested Oikawa acts violently and will do whatever it takes to get what he wants. Not only that, but the resistance is becoming more and more violent. And to add on to that, King Ushijima is trying to fix how he rules his kingdom.One can only take so much before they break, even when they are a powerful King.





	1. Forgotten Memories

**Author's Note:**

> I have been working on this for so long and I still only have a couple of chapters done so I will apologize right here for any slow updates.  
> This is my first chapter story on here, so I hope it goes alright. Basically this is a story of one of my most beloved AUs, dark royalty. There will be many many characters and side stories. However, there will also be multiple character deaths as well. Also, this story should be rather long, although I don't know the exact chapter count quite yet.  
> I hope you enjoy the long journey ahead of you!

Fly On The Wall. It was a phrase used by mostly spies of the kingdom. It meant to hear or see something without being known, didn't it?

Spying. It has always appealed to Iwaizumi. To enter enemy territories, to disguise, to work in secret. It was all so fascinating to him.

Not this job. Not as a knight.

As a knight of a prince, you had little to no alone time. You were not allowed to leave the prince alone when outside the kingdom.

It was not an enjoyable job.

Even if it was for your childhood best friend.

 

"Iwa-chan! Iwa-chan! Where did you go?" a child's voice echoed the halls as the small brunette ran from room to room, "Iwa-chan! Iwa-chan!"

Another young boy, with black hair, laid on his belly on his bed. A small, annoyed huff left him as he listened to the obnoxious yelling, as he waited for him to finally open the door to his room.

He always forgot where his room was. The first few times he found it funny, but this by now, it was getting old. Then again, he could not blame the other, the castle was huge.

The door flew open and then ran in the brunette boy. With a huge grin plastered on his face, the brunette jump on the other boy.

"Iwa-chan! I found you!" he giggled.

The black haired boy gasped at the sudden impact, "Prince Oikawa! I told you not to do that!"

"Oh yeah, I forgot," Oikawa laughed. This brat, he was a prince. The next ruler of the land, Prince Tooru Oikawa. His blood was completely of Royal blood, other can be said about his half brother.

Another boy ran into the room, he too had black hair, however, he was much smaller than the other two boys.

"Tooru! I told you he was in this room!" the boy spoke hesitantly, yet clearly.

A pout formed on Oikawa's face as he turned around to look at the other, "you're lying, Tobio-chan! You pointed at the room next door!"

"No I didn-"

"Yes you did!" the brunette huffed, "lying Tobio-chan! Tobio-chan is a liar!"

Hajime Iwaizumi, the boy who was currently being crushed underneath the prince, rolled his eyes and pulled himself up. Tobio Oikawa, or Tobio Kageyama as Oikawa called him, was the second and youngest prince of the two princes. He was not royal blood, but more so, half royal blood. Oikawa's father, the King, had an affair with a servant of the castle. She was executed soon after the birth of her son. Why they allowed the child to live was unknown to Iwaizumi.

Unfortunately for him, Kageyama was not fully considered a prince within the household, and Iwaizumi doubted he ever would be.

Iwaizumi pushed the complaining brunette off of him and glared down at the other, "quit it, both of you. And Kageyama, where is Kunimi and Kindaichi? One of them should be with you."

The younger tilted his head a bit in innocent curiosity, "I don't understand. You're not always with Tooru, but I have to be with Kunimi or Kindaichi constantly?".

Iwaizumi took a moment to reply, "it's because you're younger. You need stay with them."

"But they're also my age."

"Yes, but they're trained knights."

"Actually they're still training some," Iwaizumi knew that Kageyama meant no harm with these questions and come backs. After all, he was a prince, he had a right to ask questions and Iwaizumi had no right to shut him up in a harsh manner. However, the way he phrased them was almost insulting to Iwaizumi.

"I understand that, but loo-"

"There you are! Prince, I was so worried! Please stop running off like that!"

"I told you not to worry about him, I doubt he'd get into trouble in such a short amount of time."

Iwaizumi sighed in relief. As if right on cue, the two young knights who were earlier mentioned entered the room. Kindaichi appeared frantic as he quickly ran up to Kageyama to check him, while Kunimi kept his usual, bored expression.

"Oh! Kindaichi and Kunimi, Iwaizumi was just asking about you," Kageyama greeted.

It was then that both boys froze, looking up at the older. Iwaizumi was the oldest of all of them in this room, and despite Oikawa's status of being a prince the younger knights looked up to him rather than the prince. It only made sense though, Iwaizumi was the knight of the eldest son. However, he still had a lot to learn at the age of eleven.

"You two are aware that you are meant to be with the second prince constantly, right?" Iwaizumi strictly asked. Both males nodded hesitantly, and Iwaizumi smiled, "that's good to hear. And don't be worried about slipping up once and awhile. I used to leave this idiot alone purposely, and that's a lot worse than leaving Kageyama alone on accident."

Iwaizumi reached out his arm and took turns ruffling the hair on both the boys' heads. They were doing well at such a young age, he was proud.

"Thanks, Iwaizumi-san!" Kindaichi excitedly squeaked while Kunimi only nodded a bit in thanks. However, the slight smile on Kunimi's face did not go unnoticed by Iwaizumi.

“Iwaizumi.., I’m sorry about leaving Kunimi and Kindaichi… I got excited while I was with Tooru and wanted to go with him to find you..,” Kageyama bowed his head to Iwaizumi in an unexpected apology.

Iwaizumi puzzledly glanced at Oikawa for a moment, however he did not receive a look back. The brunette’s eyes were elsewhere, and the annoyance quivering his lip was obvious. He hated Kageyama, it was as simple as that. Even the mention of his younger half brother made Oikawa noticeably cringe. He hated him, straight out hated him.

The older turned back to the youngest prince whose head was still bowed. Iwaizumi smiled a bit and ruffled his black hair, “there’s no need to be sorry. You’re still learning as well. Would you believe me if I told you that Oikawa is secretly a troublemaker? You’re doing a great job, so don’t doubt yourself too much.”

“Geez, Iwa-chan, you sound like a mom,” Oikawa joked. He received a smack on the head in return, “ow! Iwa-chan that hurt!”

“That’s the point!” Iwaizumi huffed. Even if he was the oldest and most ‘mature’ of the bunch, he was still a child himself. He forced himself to be mature, especially when he was with Kageyama, Kunimi, Kindaichi, or any of the younger knights. He felt the need to be responsible when others were not. However, he was still rather childish when it came to Oikawa. Prince or not, Oikawa was his best friend.

“Iwaizumi! I’m going to be with Kindaichi and Kunimi! We’re going to play a game!” Kageyama announced before waving and running off.

“I hate him,” Oikawa mumbled as soon as the young boy left the room.

“Prince, like it or not he is your brother. You’re going to need to learn how to deal with him one way or another,” the knight countered.

The brunette laid down on the bed and shook his head, “you don’t understand Iwa-chan… I over heard Father speaking with Mother. He wants to hand the kingdom over to Kageyama. He doesn’t want me to have it anymore.., not even when I’m the eldest son. Not to mention he’s not even royalty! He’s half blooded! It’s not fair, Iwa-chan.., not at all…”

“Oikawa.., I doubt your father will give the kingdom to him. You’re the first son, the rightful one to the throne. You shouldn’t worry about it too much, maybe he was drunk or something,” Iwaizumi shrugged.

“You don’t get it at all! You don’t understand anything! My pride in my title is on the line here and you’re telling me to just ignore the possibility of my bro- no, that _pest_ taking my place? Iwa-chan please help me!” he was begging him, and Iwaizumi had no idea what he was expected to do. Did Oikawa want him to talk to the king about the matter? Even when this may not even be a serious issue? Or maybe, it was something much more simpler than that.

Iwaizumi looked down at the brunette. His face was hidden in Iwaizumi’s pillow, but his body was trembling. “Oikawa..,” he whispered under his breath as he reached his hand out and began running his fingers through the soft brown hair. Oikawa appeared to be terrified, terrified to lose to Kageyama, and Iwaizumi understood that. To be out shined by a younger sibling must have been awful.

“Oikawa.., I know it must be hard. But I think it’s best if you try to get along with your brother rather than fight him and hate him when he did nothing wrong,” the black haired boy advised.

Oikawa did not move from his spot, “he was wrong for being born.”

“But that’s your father’s fault, not his or even his mother’s..,” Iwaizumi sighed.

“You really don’t believe he’s done anything wrong?”

“I know he hasn’t, and it’s your job to keep an eye on him and make sure he doesn’t go down the wrong path. You’re his brother which means you’re the biggest influence on his life, not even his parents have as big of an influence on him as you do. You need to take responsibility,” Iwaizumi nodded a bit, as if to reassure himself that what he was saying was the correct thing to say.

“You know, Iwa-chan, you’re talking like a mom again.”

“Oh, shut the hell up!”

________________________________________

“Ready or not here I come!” Iwaizumi announced. It was a sunny day, and Oikawa had insisted that he and Iwaizumi play hide and seek in the garden. Iwaizumi found it rather childish considering their age and that they were both going to become teenagers in two years, however, he was easily bribed into it. Kageyama had asked to join them while Kunimi and Kindaichi were at their training.

With a grin on his face, the young boy ran through the garden as he searched for the two princes. Games like hide and go seek and tag were games he did surprisingly enjoy. However, he prefered them when he was the one hiding, not the one searching. It made for great training if he were to become a spy like he wanted in the future.

He looked in the beautiful, flower decorated bushes for as a potential hiding place. Oikawa was growing bigger and stronger so his body was not going to fit in such tight hiding places, although Iwaizumi knew the brunette would sure as hell try and likely find a way. Kageyama on the other hand, he was still extremely small. He would be the most difficult to find.

There was a rustle near one of the bushes, and Iwaizumi quickly made his way to it and peered inside the bush. Not finding anything, he puzzledly stood up and looked around the bush. Was it an animal that caused the rustle?

“Is someone there? Prince Oikawa?” Iwaizumi called quietly into the flowery bush as he looked around. There was nothing, no sign of one of the two princes and no sign of an animal. What exactly did he hear just now? He was not one to become panicked so easily, but for whatever reason this was beginning to scare him. He bit down on his lip as he called again, this time a bit more louder, “Oikawa? Are you there?”

And it was then that a sudden, and strong force jumped out at him. The weight and amount of force was enough to knock him down to the ground. It wiped the breath out of him, and his first thought was that an animal had jumped out on top of him and was prepared to attack. That was, until he heard familiar laughter.

“Got you, Iwa-chan! See, Tobio-chan? I told you we’d get him!” Oikawa giggled from on top of Iwaizumi.

The black haired boy who was next to Oikawa nodded with a giggle, “yeah! We got him!”

Iwaizumi opened his mouth, prepared to lecture Oikawa and Kageyama for doing such a thing. However, he paused. It just hit him that these two, Oikawa and the little brother he claimed to hate, were laughing together. Not only that, but they had teamed up with each other to ambush him.

The knight smiled, and began to laugh along with the two princes. Their laughter filled the garden as they stayed like that. Iwaizumi laid on his back in the grass, while Oikawa and Kageyama laid next to him on their bellies, their heads each rested on Iwaizumi’s chest.

“You two are brats, you know that?” Iwaizumi teased as the laughter began to slowly die down to snickering.

“Tobio-chan and I could not help it! You were wide open! And it was so easy to hide from you!” Oikawa laughed once again. The brunette rolled off of Iwaizumi, and onto his back as he continued to laugh at his accomplishment.

Kageyama let out another small giggle as he continued to rest his head on Iwaizumi’s chest. “It was fun though! Tooru came up with the idea that we ambush you while you were distracted!” he giggled more.

“Hey! You agreed to it! Don’t blame this all on me!”

“What are you talking about? I wasn't blaming you, I was giving you credit. I’m happy you came up with the idea, because it was fun and it looks like Iwaizumi also had fun.”

Oikawa was well repaired to defend himself, so when he was given an indirect compliment by Kagayama, he was stunned. “Wait, you’re happy I asked you to join me?” he blinked.

“Yeah!”

“O-oh…”

“Oh, Kunimi and Kindaichi should be almost done so I’m going to find them. Let’s play hide and go seek again, okay Tooru? It was fun,” the raven haired male smiled at his older brother sweetly. The young boy then pulled himself up, dusted his clothes a bit, and then quickly left to exit the garden.

“You know, Prince Oikawa,” Iwaizumi began when Kageyama was gone, “you did the right thing. You should try to include him more often.”

Oikawa rolled back onto his belly, burying his face in Iwaizumi’s chest. “I told you not to call me “Prince” when we’re away from my parents,” he mumbled.

The black haired boy rolled his eyes, “it's become a habit, I can’t help it.”

“I still don’t like it,” Oikawa huffed.

“So?”

“So what?”

“Will you include your brother more in games?”

There was a long pause, and it concerned Iwaizumi. He knew that Oikawa did not like Kageyama, but he also knew that Oikawa mentioned he planned on changing their relationship and his views when it came to his younger half brother.

“Yeah, it’s not all that bad actually. I think I’m starting to kind of like being a big brother.”

Iwaizumi laughed a bit and he ruffled his friend’s hair, “that’s good to hear!”

________________________________________

“Iwaizumi-san, are you okay?”

Opening his eyes, Iwaizumi was met by the familiar friendly merchant who stood in front of him. The black haired male looked concerned, tilting his head slightly in a rather cute way as he checked over the knight.

That was right, their trio; Oikawa, Kageyama, and Iwaizumi, it no longer existed. Kageyama was gone now, and Oikawa ruled the kingdom as a young king. Iwaizumi was, of course, his personal knight and best friend.

What happened all those years ago? They were nothing but distant memories now. Memories that Iwaizumi would cling to. Oikawa had changed, and for the worse. He was now a severely hated ruler of his people, and Iwaizumi had no choice but to protect his childhood friend from the dangers the people may cause.

Protecting Oikawa was all he could do. After all, he was the king’s knight.


	2. Warning Signs

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Iwaizumi is flustered by every action Akaashi does, and Akaashi tells Iwaizumi the struggles that he and his friends have been going through while living under the current king's rule.  
> Meanwhile in the castle, Oikawa warns the others of an unexpected visitor.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This, like the first chapter and the next couple of chapters, is more of a light hearted chapter so yay! We're setting the stage for the plot!  
> Also, puppies and IwaAka.

“Iwaizumi-san, are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m alright. Thanks for your concern,” Iwaizumi said a bit hazily. His head hurt, and he did not recall why, or how he was sore.

“I was worried, you passed out just as you were about to grab a crate of fruits. I’m relieved you didn’t pick it up, that may have caused serious injury if you dropped it on yourself while falling,” the merchant sighed.

“Ng, y-yeah,” the knight stumbled as he began to pull himself up. The young merchant kindly held out his hand, allowing Iwaizumi some support as he stood up straight. “I guess I didn’t sleep well last night,” he laughed.

“Yeah, I can tell,” the merchant said nonchalantly.

“Um, so, where were we? We were going to carry these crates back to the castle, correct?” Iwaizumi was regaining his energy back. He guessed that he must of hit his head against something while falling, that did not surprise him.

“Yes, that is correct.”

“Mind helping me out, Akaashi?”

The merchant nodded without hesitation as he made his way over to the wagon and picked up one of the crates Iwaizumi had asked for. Akaashi was a quiet, yet kind merchant who Iwaizumi was able to quickly get along with. The two of them talked often when Iwaizumi left the castle to buy a couple of their products. Although the kingdom grew their own food for the most part, the farm that Akaashi worked for sold better tasting crops. Both Iwaizumi and Oikawa prefered it.

The trip was also not a trip Iwaizumi was meant to go on. Other servants, messengers, and those who worked in the fields were the ones who were meant to carry the crops back. However, Iwaizumi enjoyed the the walk there and back. He was able to get out of the castle and get a break from all the chaos and political issues, and most importantly, Oikawa. Having a break and being able to discuss different matters with Akaashi was a huge lift off his shoulders.

“Shall we go?” the curly haired male asked. Iwaizumi practically jumped. “You did not sleep well at all, Iwaizumi-san, did you?” Akaashi appeared concerned, and a light flush flooded over Iwaizumi. “If you would like, I can ask Bokuto-san to help us carry everything. I don’t want to risk you hurting yourself..,” he said with a frown.

“No, I am perfectly capable of carrying everything I normally can. There’s nothing to worry about,” the knight quickly reassured.

Akaashi did not look convinced. However, he hesitated and then finally reached his conclusion, “I understand, Iwaizumi-san. I apologize for judging so quickly.”

His voice sounded uncertain and uneasy, and that concerned Iwaizumi. He may be a knight of the king and was suppose to be respected, however, he did not want to receive special treatment. He wanted to be seen as an equal to Akaashi, a friend even. Being given special treatment only meant Akaashi did not see Iwaizumi the way he wanted yet.

Iwaizumi picked up the crates he had almost dropped earlier. He was not going to argue with Akaashi any further, he was not going to be given special treatment. He knew Akaashi meant well, but would he have offered extra help to a random customer? Iwaizumi doubted it, and if he did, than Akaashi was so much more kind than Iwaizumi expected of human beings in general.

With Akaashi at his side, the knight began to walk in the direction of the castle. Akaashi stayed at a steady pace next to him, however, neither of them said anything. He wondered if Akaashi had been generally worried rather than showing him kindness because of his status. However, it was a bit too late to realize that now.

"Iwaizumi-san," the quiet merchant broke the silence, which was an unusual occurrence. Akaashi had Iwaizumi's full attention now.

"Yes, Akaashi?"

"I was wondering, just out of simple curiosity do you like dogs?" that was a strange question. It was an especially strange question for Akaashi to ask.

"Yes, I do. I've wanted one ever since I was a kid, but I was never allowed while under the former king and queen," Iwaizumi explained with a light chuckle.

The curly haired male nodded. The earlier silence between the two returned. This time, it seemed to be much more awkward and out of place to Iwaizumi. He watched Akaashi with interest, waiting for him to reply or to explain, but he never did. It was odd.

"Why did you ask?" Iwaizumi finally broke the silence. Akaashi has always been the type to keep his sentences short, however, the two of them were normally able to keep a conversation going.

There was a light, yet noticeable pink painted on Akaashi's cheeks. It was easy to miss, and if it had not been for Iwaizumi's watchful eyes, he would have missed it. And for whatever reason, seeing Akaashi blush made Iwaizumi extremely happy.

"I was only wondering," the merchant answered. He looked back at Iwaizumi, "if you would like a dog and the only thing preventing you from getting one was the former king and queen, you could get one now, could you not?"

Iwaizumi shrugged, "yeah, I guess I could. Although I'm not sure if King Oikawa would like the idea. You never know with that guy." The knight smiled to himself at the idea. Having a dog could be a good idea considering how lonely Oikawa truly was. A dog could benefit both of them.

"You should get one," Akaashi decided.

"If I could find one that wasn't a sick stray I would love to get one. It's hard to find a healthy dog on these streets," Iwaizumi tensed a bit. And who's fault was that? Who was at fault for the streets being as disgusting as they were? He knew the answer to that despite how much he hated to admit it. The King.

Akaashi either did not notice Iwaizumi's painful expression, or chose to ignore it. Either way, Iwaizumi was grateful the merchant did not pry or peek his nose into things that did not concern him. Other can be said about those he worked with.

"You'll find one at some point," the dark haired merchant almost sounded set on it. But set on what? Iwaizumi's eyes were locked on Akaashi as he waited for any other explanation, but the other only shied away from the green gaze.

"You sound sure," the knight chuckled.

"Because I am. There are nice dogs who live on the streets, it just depends on where you look," Akaashi explained. "If you're lucky you may come across a bunch of new born puppies even."

"Puppies, huh?" Iwaizumi smiled a bit. "A puppy would live longer, although, I am fine with any dog. Even if it's already aged a couple of years."

"The people I live with own a dog. She's a farm dog and Bokuto-san is very attached to her," Akaashi commented. "Her owners like to spoil her when they can."

"Oh yeah, you live on a farm with a couple of others, right? How is everyone doing?" Iwaizumi asked.

Akaashi frowned a bit, and that scared Iwaizumi. Did something happen to someone who lived there? Akaashi's gaze was set on in front of them, as if trying not to look at Iwaizumi. That scared him even more.

"We're all doing well for the most part, Takeda-san is very ill though. Ukai-san has been watching over him which is why he hasn't been with Bokuto-san and I," the merchant explained. That was right, he mentioned Ukai and Takeda before. They owned the farm and had a tendency of allowing people to stay for shelter if they wished to help work. It sounded nice in a way based off of what Akaashi said about it. Fresh food, a bed to sleep in, and over all nice people and friends to live with. It was the closest to castle life the poor could get.

"I am so sorry to hear that, do you need anything? Medicine?" Iwaizumi asked, watching Akaashi with worried eyes. He wanted to become closer to Akaashi, and he also wanted to help Akaashi's friends. He really did care, even if others would think otherwise because of his status.

To his surprise, Akaashi shook his head. "We don't know what it is, so I can't ask anything of you," he explained.

"I see..," Iwaizumi replied after a quiet pause. He did understand, although that worried him even more. "Shouldn't you have someone look at him?"

Akaashi looked unsure, "I don't know. A couple of people living on the farm think that it may be that life threatening illness that is spreading. There is only one kingdom who has the cure for it, and I doubt we can bribe them to help."

An illness was spreading? Only one kingdom had the cure? Fear set in, not for himself, or even Oikawa, but for Akaashi and the others. A life threatening illness was likely not to affect someone living in the castle, but for the poor.., and someone living with Akaashi already had it, would that mean he was at a greater risk?

"Which kingdom?" Iwaizumi almost dreaded the question, because he was certain he knew the answer.

"The one next to us."

Iwaizumi bit down on his lip. Shit, of course it was. That was King Ushijima's kingdom.

“I-I see..,” He stumbled on his words much to his embarrassment.

“I know we don’t get along with them, you don’t have to worry. I’m not going to bother you about it. Besides, many may want to live in that kingdom’s rule, but I’m happy here,” Akaashi explained. That shocked Iwaizumi to the point where he had to stop walking and think over what the curly haired male had just said and if he heard him right. Everybody hated the King, even most of the men and women who worked for him hated him. What made Akaashi grow attach to it? He deserved better than this.

“Why do you say that?” he asked. Akaashi looked back at him with a confused look as to why he had stopped completely.

“Why are you stopping? We’re almost there,” he pointed out. Iwaizumi was well aware of that, however, he was shocked by what Akaashi had just said. “I like this place. It may not be the best place to live but it’s my home and I want to stay here for the rest of my days,” Akaashi answered his question after a long confused stare.

"I just thought everyone hated living here. Whenever I leave the castle to to buy from you that's all I hear. People throw sticks and stones at me, they yell at me, I thought-"

"It's not you who is the reason for them being angry. They should not be blaming you. In reality, it is the king's fault," Akaashi interrupted. Realizing what he had done, the younger bowed his head quickly, "I'm sorry for interrupting you, Iwaizumi-san."

Akaashi looked fearful, as if he was prepared for Iwaizumi to punish him for simply interrupting him. Was that how everyone saw him as? A monster who would beat other human beings for such small acts? He shook his head, Akaashi knew him. So why was he suddenly fearful of him?

"It's fine," Iwaizumi smiled, deciding to lighten the mood. "A couple of the knights back at the castle like to interrupt me all the time despite knowing I have more experience. And don't get me started with the king. He may be seen as a cruel being outside of the castle, but in reality he's very childish," he chuckled.

Akaashi stood up straight again, blinking at Iwaizumi in a rather confused manner. "You're comparing me to the people you live with?" he questioned.

Iwaizumi looked over the other, "in fact, I think you would make an excellent knight. You have the body for it, although you have to have a tough mind as well, do you?" He paused for a moment in thought, "yeah, I think you would do. You know, becoming a knight could be an option for you."

"What do you mean?"

"I'm not suggesting you leave your home, I would never do that. I'm just thinking, sometimes we take in people off of the street to become servants. If you proved loyal, you could become a knight," Iwaizumi explained.

"I'm honored that you think that highly of me," Akaashi replied after a long pause. "But I'm afraid I couldn't bring myself to become a knight. I enjoy life as a merchant."

"Then continue to live your life as a merchant, I'm not stopping you. As long as you're happy and I get to see you once again a while," Iwaizumi realized how stupid that sounded after it left his mouth. It sounded like he was poorly flirting, and he was not even trying to flirt with Akaashi to begin with. Fortunately for him, Akaashi did not seem to notice.

"We're here," Akaashi announced.

"Hey, Akaashi, would you mind if you helped me bring these crates to the kitchen? I could use your help."

Akaashi looked uneasy, but nodded, "yeah. I can do that."

________________________________________

"Iwa-Chan! Iwa-Chan! We have an emergency! Iwa-Chan!" the brunette king called out, running from room to room within the castle. "Where did you go?"

A frown made its way on his face as he ran to the kitchen. Perhaps someone there knew where his dear knight was. When he made it to the kitchen doors, he threw them open as quickly as he could and looked around frantically. Iwaizumi was not there either.

"Your Majesty? Are you-" Oikawa quickly darted to the knight who dared to speak, placing his hands on the taller male’s shoulders.

"Kindaichi! Where is Iwa-Chan?"

"I don't kn-"

"You don't know? Are you sure he didn't say anything to you?" Oikawa was frantic.

"I'm s-sorry, Your Majes-"

"He left the castle. He's buying some fresh food for the kitchen. Calm down, Your Majesty," another voice interrupted the younger knight.

Oikawa let go of Kindaichi and turned to the newcomer. "You could have said something, Hanamaki!" he groaned.

"Why do you need him so badly?" Matsukawa jumped in.

"Do you miss him that much?" Hanamaki teased. Teasing a king would have been a life threatening deed. However, Hanamaki and Matsukawa knew Oikawa well. They were together since kids, however they were never as close to Oikawa as he was with Iwaizumi.

"No, we have an emergency!" the brunette childishly overreacted.

"An emergency?" Kindaichi squeaked out.

"Yes! We have visi-"

The doors opened, interrupting Oikawa mid speech. Panic set in and the brunette quickly turned around to face the intruder.

"You'd do well to be less jumpy, Oikawa."

"Iwa-Chan? Iwa-Chan you're here!" he darted to the black haired male, relief overwhelming him. However, that overwhelming joy only lasted for a brief moment when his eyes laid upon another male behind Iwaizumi. He was a peasant, that much was obvious. "And who's this?" his voice had deepened, his brunette eyes becoming deadly.

"Oh, right. This is Akaashi, he's a merchant. He only came with me to help carry the crates since Yahaba was not down there to meet with me," Iwaizumi explained.

"Yahaba wasn't down there? He went down there a while ago to meet with you though. Did something happen?" Kindaichi looked worried. "M-maybe someone should go check..."

"Nevermind that, we'll worry about Yahaba later. Iwa-Chan, everyone, I have news. We have unexpected visitors nearing us," Oikawa's earlier childish aura was already forgotten as he stood up straight as a formal king would. His voice was tinted with poison as he continued, "King Wakatoshi Ushijima will be here soon.   


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So the next few chapters may be coming out soon because I already have many of them written, I just need to go through some major editing. I hope this story isn't too hard to follow... I like making my stories kind of complicated so the readers can connect all the dots in the end.  
> Thank you for reading! I really hope I'm doing this right. I have put so much planning into this story and constant writing and rewriting into it. I hope my readers can enjoy it as much as I enjoyed creating it!


	3. Unforgiving

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Back at the farm, Kageyama tries to calm down Hinata after losing a close friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now get to meet a couple of the Karasuno babies and how they're doing. Enjoy!
> 
> Note: I used "san" instead of "sensei" due to Takeda not exactly being a teacher in this AU. I thought "san" made more sense but if you disagree let me know. I sometimes struggle with Japanese names and positions.   
> Also there are mentions of prostitution in this chapter as well. It will be a recurring subject with one character.

"I don't understand! Why? Why did they take him? And just when Takeda-san falls ill!" 

"I don't know, Hinata. I really don't. Maybe they needed more servants." 

"I won't forgive them, and I will never forgive the King!" Hinata angrily spoke. "It's not right, Kageyama. They have no right to take Noya away from us!" 

Kageyama felt numb. He knew what happened to Nishinoya was wrong, but he wanted to convince himself that he would have a better life as a servant under the king’s control. Oikawa had always been kind to his knights and servants. 

It has been years since Kageyama knew Oikawa. In some ways, he missed his half brother. In other ways, he never wanted to go back, or see his face again. It was mostly the latter, especially after what he did. Not to mention this person sitting beside him, Shouyou Hinata, had no idea that Kageyama once came from the very kingdom he hated so much. And he would be lying if he said he was not fearful of the possible outcome if Hinata were to find out. 

"Do you really think we can do anything about it now, dumbass? We can't bring Noya back!" the dark haired teen snapped. He knew Hinata was only grieving, but causing trouble due to that grief would be reckless. Kageyama was not the smartest person on the farm, but he knew from experience. 

"Tanaka hasn't left his room since it happened! Nobody can even get in there to check on him! W-we h-have to..., b-bring Noya b-back..," Hinata began to choke on his tears. He leaned against Kageyama, burying his face into the taller male's shoulder. "W-we need Noya... You liked him too, right? I know you haven't been here as long as me and the other's, but you liked him, right?" 

"Of course I did! But that doesn't give me, or you the right to blame the kingdom!" why was he defending the kingdom? He hated that place and everyone in it. "This may not even be the King's fault! He might be unaware of how many people were taken away under his name! And don't you dare blame the knights either! I'm sure there are some good knights!" 

Hinata stared up at Kageyama, his eyes were wide. "Kageyama.., don't tell me you trust the kingdom…” 

The raven haired teen bit down on his lip. This was not the first time he blew up about the kingdom potentially being a good rule, however it was the first time in front of Hinata. "No, I don't trust the kingdom," he finally replied. "I just don't believe that everyone there are the evil beings you portray them to be." 

There was a sudden cough outside the door of the room the two shared. Both males looked at each other. The earlier rage softened into sympathy and pity. That was Ittetsu Takeda. He was the very person who brought them in, the one who gave them a place to call home. Everyone who lived on the farm owed him, he deserved none of the suffering he was going through. 

"Takeda-san! What are you doing?" the startled yell could be easily heard through the thin door. However, Kageyama was unsure of who it was at first. 

"A-ah! Sawamura! I apologize, I just wanted to grab a drink of water," Takeda explained. 

"What if Ukai saw you like this? I apologize if I'm being a bit harsh, but you need to go back to your room. I want you to get well. Wasn't Suga watching over you?" Kageyama could feel Hinata's body tense. 

"Sugawara is watching over Takeda-san and 'working' like that?" Hinata gasped. Kageyama frowned and nodded. "I thought Ukai was watching over him though." 

At the mention of Ukai's name, Takeda sounded defeated, "right, I'll go back. I'm sorry." The grief staining his voice was so obvious. Kageyama bit his lip lightly as he listened to a pair of foot steps leave the area. 

Ukai and Takeda had a close relationship, having been together for years. Hinata insisted that they were unofficially married, although they were certainly in a romantic relationship. Even Kageyama could figure that out. Ukai was devastated due to Takeda falling ill. He even took time off of being a merchant to watch over him. Thankfully, Bokuto and Akaashi continued their work as merchants on their own. 

"This is a mess," he whispered under his breath. The village was destroying itself and the kingdom was doing nothing to help. People were falling ill just as Takeda did, Nishinoya was taken away to work in the castle against his will, Tanaka was depressed, and Kageyama was completely powerless. He could not do anything. Guilt suffocated him. If only he had understood the misfortunes these people had when he was younger, maybe then he could have done something to help. Now he was completely powerless. 

"This isn't your fault, Kageyama," Hinata interrupted his thoughts. "None of us can do anything. It's unfair, but now that I think about it I think we'll be okay. Honestly, I'm really scared of what comes next, but I want to believe we'll all make it through. We have a home, food, water, friends, and everything we need to survive. If we stick together, we can make it through anything." 

That feeling washed over him again. It was warm and comforting, as if he could do anything. He was unstoppable. He only ever felt such a thing when he was with Hinata, and he had only just now realized what it was. He turned to the ginger, eyes glowing with determination. It was much to sudden and random, but he had to get it off his chest while it was on his mind, "Hinata, I have something I would like to a-" 

"Can you two watch the puppies for a bit? I was asked to check on Tanaka," a voice interrupted his question. Annoyance overwhelmed the former prince, and he turned to face the newcomer. 

"Will Tanaka open the door for you, Ennoshita?" Hinata asked quickly. 

Ennoshita shook his head, "we'll have to see. Can you two watch the puppies while I do check on him?"

"Yeah! Of course! I love watching the puppies!" the ginger perked up. A grin replacing his earlier worry. "Come on, Kageyama! Let's go!" 

"Right..," the chance had passed. He silently cursed to himself as he stood up. Hinata was practically dancing with excitement. Despite his annoyance with Ennoshita, the sight of a happy Hinata made him feel a bit more lighter. 

"I'll race you!" Hinata challenged.

"Like you have a chance," Kageyama mocked. 

"Ready! Set! Go!" the shorter suddenly took off as fast as he could. He ran down the hall before swiftly taking a turn. Kageyama gritted his teeth.

"Wait up, dumbass! I wasn't ready!" he called out before taking off as well, not far behind Hinata. 

"Be careful you two!" Ennoshita called out warily somewhere behind them. 

Both of them ran with each other at full speed, neither daring to slow down. Kageyama was able to catch up to Hinata, but unable to pass him. They both grinned at each other, before both of them sped up in an attempt to pass the other. That did not work. 

They ran down the hall of the lodge where they lived, causing anyone walking down the hall to quickly jump out of the way. They then exited the lodge, and ran to the barn that was located not far away. Neither of them would slow down, and whenever they sped up, so did the other. It was frustrating. 

They ran to the barn's doors, and threw them open before coming to a complete stop afterwards to catch their breath. It was a tie once again. 

Kageyama glared at Hinata who glared back. It was expected that they would tie since they always did. However, neither of them wanted to lose, or even tie. They wanted to win. Even if it was just a random short race to the barn. 

"I touched the door first!" Hinata suddenly announced. 

"Idiot, no you didn't!" Kageyama snapped back. 

"I'm positive I did! Accept your lost, Kageyama!" 

"I'm not going to accept a lost that didn't hap-"   
"A tie again, huh?" both teens jumped. Kageyama turned around to face the newcomer, and he was greeted with a friendly wave. Koushi Sugawara. "Hey, you two! What are you up to? Watching the puppies?" he asked as he caught up to them with his usual friendly smile. Both Kageyama and Hinata nodded. "They were doing well last I checked on them. Soon they'll be old enough to leave their mother and sell," Sugawara observed. 

"Not all of them! Some of them are staying here," Hinata announced. 

"Oh, that's right! You and Kageyama planned on adopting one of the black ones! Takeda-san did mention that to me. I'm sure you two will take great care of him," the silver haired male commented.

Kageyama frowned. Sugawara was so quick to be happy for other people that he rarely expressed what would make himself happy. "You could always help take care of the puppy if you wanted," he suggested. 

"I would love to help once and awhile. It may not be often though, I've been pretty busy," Sugawara shyly confessed. That ticked Kageyama off. 

"Busy with what, selling yourself? Everyone is worried sick about you! Sawamura is scared you'll become sick! Azumane is worried you'll get yourself killed! You can live on the farm with us, you know! You can have a peaceful life without any of this!" he gritted his teeth. Sugawara had a choice, yet he chose the most dangerous option. Kageyama could not understand that. 

Hinata had jumped a bit from Kageyama with an uneasy look while Sugawara still stood where he was. He looked calm, yet shameful. "I understand everyone's worry, but please don't worry too much about it. It's something I need to do," he replied softly. It was as if he was speaking to a toddler, his voice was soft and slow. 

That in itself irritated Kageyama. Telling them not to worry. Perhaps it irritated him so much because in some ways, Sugawara was like him. He could choose to stay here and live as a farmer without any of the risks, or he could continue working as a prostitute. It frustrated him. However, before he could speak up, he was interrupted for what felt to he the twentieth time today. 

"We're back!" the barn doors opened and two familiar faces joined them. 

"Oh! Bokuto! Akaashi! You're back!" Sugawara smiled at them. There was obvious relief flooding his aura. "How did you two do?" 

"Well let me tell you!" Bokuto laid a hand on Akaashi's shoulder. "This guy got to go inside the castle! Inside!" 

"It's not as big of a deal as it seems, Bokuto-san," Akaashi spoke before anyone else could. Despite for being the type to not show much emotion, he was certainly embarrassed. 

"The castle?" Hinata squeaked. "Did you meet the king?" 

Akaashi hesitantly nodded, "yes." His eyes averted away whenever he spoke. Something was not right, that scared Kageyama. 

"Wait! You didn't tell me that!" Bokuto complained. 

"What was he like? Is he as cruel as we believed?" Hinata jumped up and down, excited to finally have his questions answered. 

"No, actually. He was very childish, although he didn't like me. He was very humorous and childish when it came to his knights," Akaashi explained.

"He didn't like you? What do you mean by that?" Kageyama joined into the questioning as well. 

"I assume it was because I am merely a merchant and I was in the castle without his permission," Akaashi explained. It did not seem to phase him, however he did appear to be hiding something. If it was something that had to do with Oikawa, Kageyama wanted to know. He was not the type of guy to mess with. 

"Back to the king, what did he look like? He has never really shown his face since everything went downhill so I've never seen him before," Hinata asked. 

"He was young, about our age. Brunette hair, brown eyes, about my height, maybe a bit taller..," Akaashi trailed off as his eyes drifted away from the others and to the puppies. "Are they doing well?" 

Everyone looked confused by his sudden change of subject. Everyone's eyes were on him, he had their full attention. However, nobody spoke up to answer his question.   
"Oh? The puppies?" Sugawara finally answered. "They're doing very well! Soon they'll be old enough to leave their mother and hopefully sell!" 

Akaashi nodded in response, "okay, thank you."

“Why do you ask? Are you hoping to keep one? I’m sure Takeda-san will be fine with that. After all, Hinata asked if he could keep one,” Sugawara gave Akaashi a pleasant smile. One of those star smiles he made, they were always genuine and kind. It was a trait of Sugawara that everyone appreciated on the farm, and it was certainly a trait that helped Kageyama. 

“No, well, I was hoping I could give one to someone as a gift,” Akaashi answered. Kageyama’s eyes widened. 

“You want to give one to someone as a gift? I’ll mention it to Takeda-san if you want,” the silver haired male offered. 

“Yes, I would appreciate that.” 

“W-wait, there is someone you want to give a gift to? Is it anyone on the farm because they may have already asked for a puppy,” Bokuto looked confused. 

“I’m not saying,” Akaashi answered. He looked up at the others in the barn, a small smile twitching at his lips. “It’s a surprise, okay?” he explained before pushing one of the barn doors open. With one last look at the others, he left. 

“Akaashi smiled, that’s pretty rare,” Bokuto laughed. “I wonder who it is who made him smile like that. Anyone got any ideas?”

“I’m not sure. I rarely see Akaashi anymore, but you see him all the time, don’t you Bokuto? Shouldn’t you know more people he interacts with than any of us?” Sugawara asked, looking at the taller. 

Bokuto's eyes lifted and he placed his finger on his chin in thought. "I mean, there are the customers but he never really talks to them much. There is this one knight he talks to a lot and sometimes helps him with the boxes. Wait," Bokuto looked at Sugawara in victory, "that's it!" 

"What? You're thinking the knight?" 

"Well who else could it be? They always have time alone together while walking to the castle to talk about anything they want to! It has to be him!" he was convinced. 

"Are you trying to say that.., Akaashi is in love with a knight?" Hinata exclaimed. "But is he nice?" 

"Oh, definitely! He would never hurt Akaashi!" 

Akaashi? In love with a knight? Kageyama was unsure if that was exactly the case, but he had a bad feeling about the whole situation. He used to know many of the knights, but there were very few who did not turn corrupt as everything went downhill. 

"How does this knight look like?" he finally spoke up. He wanted to downplay this horrible feeling in his chest, "do you remember his name?" 

"Eh?" Bokuto looked at Kageyama in confusion. Thankfully, he shrugged it off and thought for a moment. "I'm not exactly sure. He has black or dark brown hair, green eyes if I remember correctly, and he's about our age maybe? Oh wait! Iwa-something! I don't know, you'd have to ask Akaashi for clarification," Bokuto suggested. 

Kageyama stared at Bokuto. Iwa-something? Did he meant Iwaizumi? If that was the case, Akaashi may truly be in danger. Not by Iwaizumi, but by- 

_ I have a bad feeling about this… _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really hope I didn't mess up on any of the characters' personalities. Some of them I am not used to writing about.  
> Anyways, thank you for reading!


	4. Help

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> King Ushijima has a deal to make with King Oikawa. Iwaizumi also has something to ask.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter went through some serious editing and I still don't think it turned out well.   
> But also, more characters! When I originally wrote this story this chapter was not in it, but I wanted to find a way to include a few Shiratorizawa characters. I thought giving them their own kingdom would be the best fit for Oikawa's case.  
> I hope you like it!

“Alright, Ushiwaka, explain yourself. Why are you here?” Oikawa ordered as he sat down in the chair across from the other king. Iwaizumi, his personal knight, stood next to him while Hanamaki and Matsukawa stood behind him on either side. 

Ushijima sat across from Oikawa, he too had three knights with him. The one who stood next to him was a shady looking male with red hair. The two knights standing behind him were shorter than the other. The taller of the duo had extremely light hair with darker colored tips while the other had straight copper colored hair. 

“King Oikawa, I have a serious matter to discuss with you,” the king in question spoke. Of course it was a serious matter, Ushijima never showed up unless it was a serious matter. Oikawa furrowed his eyebrows as he watched the other brunette closely. He did not trust Ushijima, not at all. Whatever he had to say, Oikawa had already decided he was not going to accept it. 

“And what might that be?” Oikawa spoke in a mocking tone. 

Ushijima noticed and narrowed his eyes, “I would like to make a generous offer. Oikawa, I understand your pride in being a king and I will not take that title away from you. However, I’ve noticed how much your people are suffering just to simply stay alive. I would like to take control of your kingdom. You may continue to live in this castle and keep your title, and I will take care of matters from behind the scene. I only wish to help your peop-”

“No can do,” Oikawa interrupted. “Now, are we done here?”

“Hey, King Wakatoshi is making a generous offer here-” the redhead jumped in. 

“Tendo,” Ushijima sternly interrupted his knight. He looked back to Oikawa, “is that final decision? Are you sure you want to decline my offer?”

Oikawa rolled his eyes. “Why would I make an agreement with the likes of you?” he countered.

“Very well,” the king nodded in understanding before standing up from his seated position. “Tendo, Semi, Shirabu, Goshiki and Kawanishi are waiting outside. I think it’s time we leave.” 

“Wait? What? Your Majesty! You can not just leave like this!” the lighter haired male quickly left his position and hurriedly scurried to his king’s side. “You’re just going to let him continue to treat his people without any care? I apologize, but I won’t allow it!”

“Semi-”

“No, I agree with him. This is outrageous! You can’t just let him push you around!” Tendo jumped in before Ushijima could finish. Tendo turned to Oikawa threateningly, “my King is making a very generous offer. I think you should reconsider it.”

“Ushiwaka,” Oikawa stood up from his seated position, glaring at the bunch. “I suggest you leave quickly with your misbehaving knights. It would be a shame if something were to happen to one of them.” 

Ushijima did not reply, and only nodded before turning his back to the other king. Without being motioned to, Tendo, Semi, and Shirabu followed him out. Tendo gave Oikawa another glance before completely exiting the room. 

Once they were gone, Iwaizumi took this chance to speak up. “King Oikawa, would you mind if I dismissed myself?” it was an odd offer, but Oikawa shrugged.

“Go ahead, the meeting is over. Makki, Mattsun, you two may be dismissed as well,” the brunette replied. The tension in the two knight’s shoulders who were addressed loosened. However, by that time, Iwaizumi had already begun to exit the room. Oikawa raised a brow. Was there something wrong with Iwaizumi?

________________________________________

_ I hope I’m not too late…  _ Iwaizumi bit down on the inside of his cheek as he quickly left the room of the meeting. The meeting went horribly as he had expected. Every meeting the two kings had always gone to went horrible, ever since the two of them were only children. 

Iwaizumi himself did not like Ushijima either. There was little reason to dislike him other than his status in wealth was above them, however Ushijima was complicated and difficult to understand. Iwaizumi could never bring himself to understand him at all. 

However, since childhood their families would meet once and awhile and Oikawa would always become stressed and paranoid when meeting with Ushijima. Nowadays, when it came to Oikawa, it was simply what seemed to be one sided hate towards Ushijima, but back then there was so much more stress and insecurity that went into it. Due to Iwaizumi’s loyalty to his best friend and king, he could never bring himself to like Ushijima. No matter what.

Relief flooded over him when he caught sight of the leaving king. He already knew what he was going to do. It was embarrassing, yes, but it had to be done. He had to do something. 

“Your Majesty, Ushijima!” he called out, he sounded frantic which was not what he had intended. He quickly caught up to them and allowed himself to fall to his knees, bowing down to the other king. He never bowed down to Oikawa unless there was a formal meeting, and even then it was never as dramatic. “I need your help!”

“Iwaizumi?” Ushijima must of stopped to look at him. Iwaizumi did not dare look up though, he refused to look up just it case he accidentally disrespect Ushijima. “You need my help?”

“Hey, isn’t this  _ King Oikawa’s _ main knight?” Iwaizumi recognized the voice as Tendo’s. He began to bite down on the inside of his cheek once again. “Why would  _ he _ need  _ our _ help? Didn’t  _ your _ king already deny  _ our _ king’s offer of help?” 

“Tendo, stop,” Semi countered. Iwaizumi imagined Semi glaring at Tendo before nodding to Ushijima, turning the topic over to him after shutting Tendo up. He would have snickered if it had not been for the serious matter at hand. 

“Iwaizumi, what is it that you need my help with?” Iwaizumi hesitated at the question. He decided to keep his head down and speak in the position he was in. It was embarrassing for him to be in such a state. 

“Your Majesty, I understand if you refuse to help me after how rudely King Oikawa treated you and your knights. However, I will still make my request. I am friends with a merchant who lives on a farm close by our village. The man who owns that farm has fallen very ill. I understand you probably do not have the cure on you at this moment, but I was hoping you would help him, for my friend,” Iwaizumi took a deep breath as he waited for the reply. 

“Which illness?”

“I am not sure, Your Majesty. I was told it was extremely lethal and I was told your kingdom was the only kingdom who carries the cure. I believe it is beginning to spread throughout the land,” the knight explained. 

“Stand up,” Ushijima ordered. Iwaizumi obeyed and stood up. He was fearful of what may counter him after making such a request. However, to his surprise the knights who stood behind Ushijima appeared genuinely concerned, and so did Ushijima. Iwaizumi looked up at Ushijima, yet preventing himself from making direct eye contact with him. “Where is this farm?”

Iwaizumi blinked with a bit of confusion but answered, “I am not completely sure, but I have a pretty good idea of where it is. I doubt Akaashi is still on merchant duty, but we should be able to find the farm before nightfall.”

Ushijima stared at Iwaizumi for a moment as silence fell upon them. That made Iwaizumi tense up. “Very well, take us to your friend,” the king concluded. 

The knight’s eyes widened as he looked directly at Ushijima for the first time. He was serious. There did not appear to be any hidden intent. “You’re serious?” he almost choked on his own words. 

“Of course he’s serious, why wouldn’t we help your friend? It was not exactly you who turned us down, after all. That was your king’s decision,” Tendo shrugged. 

“I-” the black haired male shook his head in disbelief, “I can’t believe this, I- I-, thank you.”

Ushijima nodded in understanding, and Iwaizumi could have sworn he saw what looked to be a smile grace the brunette’s face, “bring us to them.”

________________________________________

“Hey! Do you think if we broke into the castle and demanded to have Noya back they would give him back?” Hinata grinned, rolling onto his belly to face Kageyama. 

“Of course that wouldn’t work!” the black haired teen groaned. 

“Yeah, I didn’t think so..,” Hinata sighed. He laid his chin on Kageyama’s stomach as he puffed out his cheeks. “I just miss Noya, and Kuroo.” 

Kageyama frowned, but remained silent. That was right, Kuroo was also taken away a year or so ago. They never heard from him since, and Bokuto became depressed for an extremely long time. Those two were similar to Tanaka and Nishinoya in a way, but on a slightly more mature level. Kageyama was taken in on the farm a year ago as well, so he barely knew Kuroo before he was taken away. Hinata, on the other hand, had been living on the farm for years. 

“I’m sick of the kingdom taking people I care about.., I’m scared they’ll take you away as well,” Hinata continued after a long silence. 

Kageyama looked at Hinata in curiosity.  _ Did something else happen? _ Kageyama knew how much Hinata hated the kingdom, even before Kuroo was taken away. “What do you mean? How many people has the kingdom taken from you?” 

Hinata lifted his head up in thought, he appeared willing to answer. In fact, it was almost like he was looking forward the question. “Well, they’ve taken Kuroo and Noya away. I remember there was this one guy that I really didn’t like who would sometimes pass through who was attacked and then went missing. I don’t think anyone really liked him though, he was a bit of a prick. The guy that was always with the prick went missing as well. I don’t remember their names, but I think Kuroo and Bokuto took a liking to the guy. There were a couple of other instances like that as well. I think a friend of Sawamura’s also went missing after an attack from the knights, he was really nice too. There was another incident that happened, but I would rather not talk about it,” the orange haired teen trailed off. 

_ Another incident? _ Kageyama wanted to know, but if Hinata was not going to tell him it could not be helped. He would just have to wait. It would be hypocritical of him to complain about Hinata hiding stuff from him. He was a prince in hiding after all. 

"I see..," he trailed off. He was unsure of what to say. Hinata appeared to have gone through a lot because of the kingdom, and even some the events caused by them he refuses to speak about. What could he say? 

The sound of horses and wheels overtook the scene and Kageyama quickly turned to the window to see what was going on. He silently prayed it was not the kingdom once again. 

"Why are they back?" Hinata had jumped up and ran to the window at the slightest of sound. His eyes were narrowed as he stared out the window. "What else could they possibly want? Haven't they taken enough? I'm going to find out!" the orange haired male announced. 

"Wait! Hinata!" Kageyama jumped up from the bed. "Don't-" Hinata had already run off. Tense, Kageyama looked back out the window. Despite appearing as royalty, he did not recognize the design of the carriages right away.  "Wait, is that?" despite the risk at hand, Kageyama ran out of the room, through of the lodge, and outside. "King Ushijima?" he blinked, staring at king as he left his carriage, followed by a couple of knights and led by another who did not quite fit in with the others. "Iwaizumi? What are they doing here? And together?" Kageyama muttered under his breath to himself. 

He watched as Akaashi went up to them, and politely bowed to them before standing up straight. He appeared to be speaking relatively casually to Iwaizumi, and Kageyama could feel his throat go dry. Oikawa was not the same older brother Kageyama once knew. He was hateful, and Kageyama hated him back for the most part. He was not someone to be messed with, especially when it came to Iwaizumi. If the king found out about how close they were Akaashi would be-

_ Akaashi is going to get himself killed. _

The way Akaashi appeared overjoyed by what Iwaizumi told him made Kageyama suspicious.  _ What are they doing here to begin with? Why are Iwaizumi and Ushijima together?  _ Last Kageyama knew, the two kingdoms did not get along and Iwaizumi disliked Ushijima almost as much as Oikawa did. The whole situation was bizarre. 

Kageyama’s eyes trailed over to Hinata, who was standing nearby Akaashi. Being seen in a place like this by Ushijima or Iwaizumi was risky, so when he got Hinata’s attention, he waved him over. Hinata looked confused and shocked, whether that was good or not, Kageyama wanted to know. 

“What are they talking about over there?” Kageyama got straight to the point when Hinata joined him. “And what’s with that face of yours?”

Hinata shook his head, “I’m so confused… I know that the king here isn’t the king ruling over us, but why is he here? And why is he offering help? Also, why is the king’s knight here with him? Akaashi knows him so that must mean he’s that knight Bokuto mentioned before, right? He dresses different from all the other knights too…”

Kageyama nodded, “no, that is definitely a knight of King Oikawa. Wait, what do you mean they’re offering help?” He looked at Hinata, dumbfounded. 

“They said they brought the cure for the sickness Takeda-san has… I’m really confused,” Hinata blinked a couple of times as if trying to process everything he had just said. “Why would they want to help Takeda-san? He.., us.., we mean nothing to them.” 

The former prince stared at the smaller in disbelief before looking back to Akaashi. He was talking to Ushijima now, leading him inside the lodge. He noticed that Iwaizumi was following them inside. That was a relief, he did not have to worry about being seen now. 

However, the black haired knight turned his head to check behind them just before entering the lodge, his green gaze landing directly on Kageyama. The teen tensed up as Iwaizumi opened his mouth slightly into a small ‘o’ in a confused and surprised expression. That was right, Iwaizumi believed he was dead. In fact, everyone in the kingdom thought he was dead. Everyone, but one specific person.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh no, more mysteries to be solved, and still little answers. Aha, I'm sorry this story is coming out slowly. But in some ways I think drawing it out makes it more suspenseful and gives you all the chance to guess what may happen, right?   
> I'll try to update a lot more as I continue to write!


	5. Kindness Can Be Found In Unusual Places

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nishinoya is sick of being pushed around, but he has no other choice. 
> 
> Meanwhile, Oikawa has an enemy captive.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Do you guys have any idea how many times I rewrote and rewrote this entire chapter and it still turned out cringy? This is so embarrassing, but at least it progresses the story a bit..  
> I promise the next chapter will be written better!

“Get a move on! We don’t have all day!”

_Pain_. Everything hurt. This was nothing like the pain he went through on the farm. Lifting hay and feeding the animals was nothing compared to this, no matter how many times these men tried to convince him otherwise. Not to mention they never ate. He was working on an empty stomach, how was he suppose to work under such harsh conditions?

Perhaps he was being a bit over dramatic considering that it was his first day. However, he was not used to this amount of work. Sure, he worked on the farm for hours at a time with Tanaka, but never like this. Lifting bricks, building stone structures, digging large ditches, he was not used to this. His whole body was in pain and ached, and this was only his first day of being here for the rest of his life. To think he was only seventeen.

He hated feeling helpless like this. It was his first day here and he had already watched four people die whether it was from injury, exhaust, or suicide, and nine people injure themselves only to be forced to continue working. He prayed he would not be added to that list today.

A sudden force pushed him over, twisting his ankle in the process as he landed in the mud. He flinched and looked up at the man with gritted teeth, he was not having it today. First, he is dragged here against his will away from his friends, then he’s forced to work for these people, forced to watch people die while unable to do anything, and now this _ass_ decided it would be an excellent idea to push him down. “Hey! Watch it!” he snapped.

The large man looked down at him, he was guard, not a worker like him. _Crap,_ yelling at a guard like he just did could get himself killed.

“What did you just say to me?” the man growled. The guard took a step closer, but the smaller male stayed where he was. His brown glare daring not to flinch away for a second. Whatever this guy planned to do, he was going to fight back.

“Oi! Leave him alone! He’s done nothing to you!” he blinked and looked up at the newcomer from his sitting position on the ground. It was another guard, although he was much shorter than the other man. However, he still had a very threatening look to him.

The man threatening him, to his surprise, grumbled something under his breath before taking his leave. The former farm boy watched as the man left, confused as to why he did not pick a fight with the other guard. Was this shorter guard at a higher rank? From experience, he knew that smaller guys were easily pushed around for their height, this guard standing in front of him must have had some experience to scare off a bigger guard like that.

The guard looked down at him and offered his hand to him. “I apologize about his behavior, are you okay?” the guard asked.

He nodded, “yeah, I’m alright.” He let out a nervous laugh, “I’m sorry about being a bother.” He took the other’s hand and pulled himself up into a standing position.

The guard raised a brow at the laugh, “it was no bother. Are you new? I don’t believe I’ve seen you yet.”

He straightened his shoulders, “yes! I am!” He was not used to being the ‘newbie’, if anything he was used to training the ‘newbies’ when it came to the farm. This was all so new to him, and he was not a fan of his position at all.

“I thought so,” the guard nodded. “Morisuke Yaku, I am in charge of this side of the field. This will be the field you will be working in unless they decide to move you. What is your name?”

He let out a sigh of relief. He was lucky to be stuck with this guy instead of the other guards he was watching earlier, they were all so cruel. He cleared his throat before replying, and despite his horrible position he put on a confident grin, “Yuu Nishinoya!”

_Maybe this place isn’t so bad after all._

________________________________________

Yaku may have been a guard, but he was much more kinder than any of the others Nishinoya had the misfortune of having an experience with. Despite his kindness, Yaku was not someone to mess with. He was quick to anger and was not afraid to hit or kick someone for saying the wrong thing, however that also included the guards. 

Nishinoya began to look up to him, and although it was only nearing the end of his first day, he trusted Yaku, at least little bit. He was the small amount of kindness that he could find in this dark, evil place. He was grateful for having been put in Yaku's assigned area rather than another guard’s. They were horrible to their workers, and much less understanding.

Yaku did not like slackers, however he did seem to take into consideration if someone was hurt. He was unable to provide much medical attention, but he was able to give the injured person a break if it was that bad. Nishinoya had only twisted his ankle and earned a couple of bruises that day, but after watching a few more workers die, he was not going to complain. He and the others were lucky Yaku did not beat them mercilessly as many of the other guards did.

Overall, Nishinoya was grateful. He still missed the farm, and he still had the determination to find a way back, however the urge was not as instant anymore. He was willing to take his time if he needed to. Perhaps over that time he would become closer to Yaku and hear a story or two about him, he was curious.

"You will be sharing a room with the other workers in this section. It can get a bit cramped so I hope you don't mind," Yaku explained as he walked down the hall. Nishinoya followed close behind as he looked around at the walls. There was little to look at, no paintings and little furniture. However, he was still amazed. He was in the castle now. He lived in the castle.

"I'm used to cramped, it's not a problem," he finally replied.

"That's good to hear," Yaku came to a stop suddenly. Distracted, Nishinoya walked right into Yaku. Quickly, he jumped back and quickly began to apologize.

"Crap, sorry! I wasn't looking where I was going! Sorry!" he loudly apologized.

Yaku laughed a bit, "there's not need to apologize. I knew how distracted you were. Anyways, this will be your room." The light brown haired guard opened the door. Inside there were a bunch of men. Too many for Nishinoya to count in such a small room. His jaw dropped.

"It really is.., cramped..," he breathed.

Yaku frowned, “I’m sorry about this. This is the only place we have where you can stay. I hope it isn’t too much for you. If you would like I can-”

“It’s the best you can do, don’t worry about it,” Nishinoya quickly spoke up. He was not exactly the best listener, and he did not want Yaku to go on about some special treatment he could possibly give him. He did not need special treatment. After all, he was going to leave eventually and go back to Tanaka and the others, that was his plan anyway.

“I should advise you that it is best not to interrupt a guard while he is talking,” Yaku warned, looking down at him. It was strange, Yaku was obviously much shorter than many of the other guards, yet Nishinoya was still shorter than him. It was not something he was not used to, however. He was used to being the short friend. It was not necessarily a touchy subject for him as it was with many others who were short.

The dark haired slave laughed a bit, “yeah, I know. Sorry about that.”

Yaku sighed, “you’re rather carefree, I see. Anyways, you should get some sleep while you can. You will be getting up early to eat and work out in the field again. I’ll leave you be now.” The light brunette took a step back and turned his back to Nishinoya to leave.

“Wait! I have a question!” Nishinoya called out, swiftly turning to Yaku. Yaku stopped and turned back around. He looked confused by the sudden outburst.

“What is it?”

He did not bother to explain himself, he went straight to the point, “do you know of a Kuroo who may have been brought here about a year ago? He was a friend who lived on the farm with me and he was taken here. I was hoping you knew where he-”

“Kuroo? You know Kuroo? Tetsurou Kuroo?”

Nishinoya perked up. He was in luck, Yaku did know who he was talking about. “Yeah! Do you know where he is?” he asked hopeful.

“Ah..,” Yaku hesitated. He looked around in the hallway, as if to make sure no one else was there. “Kuroo was a very hard worker, he was rather comical and positive as well despite his poor situation. I liked that about him. Everyone liked him, in fact. He did not have many enemies, even the king liked him..,” he trailed off.

Nishinoya did not like where this was going. He frowned and watched Yaku closely. Every small fidget the guard made did not go unnoticed by Nishinoya as he watched him. “What happened to him?” he regretted asking. He feared the worse.

“This may come as a surprise to you, but..,” Yaku looked around again. “He proved himself to be loyal. He works as a knight now. He is of a lower status than many of the other knights and he is constantly supervised, but he is a knight who fights and works for the king.”

Nishinoya’s brown eyes widened. “Wait, _what_?” he exclaimed.

________________________________________

“Mind telling me where they took him?”

“I-I-I d-don’t know-ow..,” the apprentice knight stumbled out. His hands which were tied behind his back were shaking and tightly squeezed into fists. In fact, his whole body was shaking and it would not stop. “P-please let me go..! I’ll do anything..!” he whimpered.

The brunette king raised a brow as he stared down at the other. He was not going to let him go anytime soon, maybe never. The apprentice knew that, but he needed to try something to bribe him. He needed to get back before he became the reason for a war between the two kingdoms. Two _strong_ kingdoms at that.

“Anything?” his words were poisonous, they made him shrink away. “If you are willing to do anything, then how about you tell me where they took my knight?” his once brown eyes appeared to be blood thirsty red.

“I-I don’t know..! P-please believe me! I don’t know! If you don’t let me go there might be-”

“Might be what? A war?” the king began to laugh, the change in his voice was frightening. “Do you think I’m scared of _you_ ? What _your_ kingdom can do? If it is a war you are worried about, then don’t bother worrying. I encourage a war! Let Ushiwaka start a war against us! See what happens!”

The knight’s throat dried, his eyes teared up, “y-you don’t mean that…”

“Of course,” Oikawa smirked. “Ushiwaka may be strong, but he’s a coward. He’s all talk and no bite. Should I bother fearing such a pathetic man?” the king took a step closer, and then another, and another until his mouth was right near the apprentice’s ear. “The answer is no,” he chuckled and took a step back at the small whimper that left the younger’s mouth. “Now then, tell me where they took my knight. If you do not I will have no other choice but to kill you.”

The knight opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out. There were tears brimming his eyes. He heard of many rumors about this king, yet he rarely ever interacted with Oikawa, or any of his men. Tendo, his mentor, always warned him to stay away from them. King Tooru Oikawa was a cruel, headstrong, and proud ruler. He was not someone to mess with, and his people were in ruins. That was what he was told, anyway.

“Nothing? So you honestly do not know where he is?” Oikawa raised a brow. “Ah! You’re useless!” he whined. Finally, he looked away and looked to the two knights standing behind the kneeling apprentice. “Hanamaki, Matsukawa, take him to the dungeon. Maybe he will become lucky and make a friend, or perhaps we will be the ones to become lucky, and he will make a new enemy.”

The two knights suddenly lifted the younger from behind and began pushing him along. Despite wanting to fight back, he listened to them and continued walking. He was led down the sketchy, stone stairs, and then down to the dungeon Oikawa earlier mentioned. He looked around anxiously, however he only saw one jail. A jail which already had someone in it. A trembling brunette who wore worn and torn clothes.

One of the knights holding him, the black haired one, let go of him and opened the dungeon. The other threw him in before the black haired one closed the barred up door, locking it. Both of the knights glanced at each other for a moment. There was uncertainty reflecting in each of their eyes before they nodded to each other and turned their backs to the locked up apprentice knight.

“W-wait!” he tried to call out, but they were already gone. Paranoid, he looked at the other person who sat in the corner furthest from him. There was an uneasy, almost dark aura coming off of him. He was unsure if he wanted to speak to the suspicious figure, or not. However, his hands were still bound behind his back, and he doubted any of the knights would bother to untie him if he asked.

The other’s brown bangs covered his eyes, his face buried in his knees as he clung to them as if his life depended on it. Suddenly, the suspicious character looked up at the other when the knights were positively gone. The dark haired knight had not noticed he was staring until the other prisoner looked back at him. Quickly, he looked away, but not quick enough.

“W-would you like me to untie you?” the unfamiliar sound of the new voice made him jump a bit.

“Huh?” he squeaked.

The suspicious character stood up, making his way over to him. “I asked if you wanted me to untie you. It looks uncomfortable,” he repeated.

“O-oh, yeah! Thank you!” the brunette nodded before kneeling down behind the knight. He began to mess with the complicated knot which held his hands together behind his back. He knew he would not have been able to untie himself, so perhaps he was lucky to be placed in a cell with another prisoner.

“You’re a knight from another kingdom, right?” the prisoner spoke as he continued to mess with the knot. “You don’t look or dress the same as the other knights, but your armor tells me you are either a warrior or a knight.”

“A-ah! Yes! I am a knight who works for King Wakatoshi Ushijima! Actually, I’m an apprentice right now and my mentor is Satori Tendo.., but I will be a full fledged knight soon! My mentor is the best there is, so I know he won’t fail!” he grinned.

“O-oh! I was right!” he shyly said back. “My name is Tadashi Yamaguchi, it’s nice to meet you,” he introduced. Despite appearing anxious, the other prisoner did sound pleasant. It helped calm down the apprentice knight a bit. However, it was only a bit.

“Tsutomu Goshiki! Nice to meet you as well!” he introduced. He finally felt his hands become freed and quickly pulled away from the rope. He practically fell as he spun around to face the other. He was excited to finally meet someone pleasant and friendly, even if he happened to meet them in a dungeon.

The friendly smile on Yamaguchi’s face suddenly faded. An anxious, worried look took over his expression. “Goshiki?” his eyes fell downwards, focusing on his lap. His whole body tensed up as he repeated the name. His dark eyes were wide in what looked to Goshiki to be fear.

Confused, the black haired male cocked his head to the side, “yeah?”

Yamaguchi was beginning to shake a bit, but he quickly nodded and looked back up, “I-I see.”

“Is something wrong?” Goshiki asked leaning in a bit closer to get a better look at the brunette’s face. It was then that he noticed the freckles that were sprinkled all across his face. Yamaguchi gave off a strange aura, it was something he noticed right away, but it was much more noticable now. _Is he okay?_

Yamaguchi hesitated before shaking his head. “It’s nothing really it’s just…” he trailed off. His body tensed up once again, and he quickly looked away from Goshiki. His fingers gripped his worn pants, his fear filled eyes focusing on them.

His behavior was strange, nothing like Goshiki had ever experienced before. He was so tense and jumpy over such small things. Goshiki did wonder if he had scared this man before, but nothing came to mind when he tried to think of something he may have done. He never saw Yamaguchi before, so why did his name scare him?

“I-I’m just scared..,” Yamaguchi whispered under his breath. It was so quiet, Goshiki wondered if he was meant to actually hear it.

“Scared? Why? How long have you been in the dungeon?” Goshiki tensed up, “they don’t torture us do they? I’ve heard of stories about kingdoms torturing their captives! We don’t do it so I never thought of it until now!”

Yamaguchi shook his head, “n-no, not exactly…”

“Not exactly?” Goshiki exclaimed.

“Most of the time they put prisoners and criminals to death to make an example out of them to the people. That’s what they did to m-my friend,” Yamaguchi’s voice cracked towards the end of his explanation.

“T-they killed your friend?”

Yamaguchi stared at him. His expression was painful as he debated whether or not to reply. Goshiki was beginning to question why he even asked. “They b-beat him t-to death..,” the brunette whispered hushly. “T-they killed him a-and I c-couldn’t s-save him..,” he bit down on his bottom lip as it began to quiver.

Goshiki moved slightly back, giving the brunette space. He was the one who asked, and he felt guilty for bringing it up, but he had no idea how he was suppose to help. “I’m-” he stuttered, frantically searching for the right words. “I’m sorry..,” he settled on a short apology.

Yamaguchi’s head shot up, looking at Goshiki. “You have to get out of here, I won’t let you end up like him. You can’t die,” he announced. The brunette quickly stood up and pulled Goshiki up with him.

The apprentice let out a nervous laugh, “what are you talking about? Death? Dying? Me? I-I’m not going to die. If the king kills me it will start a war. He wouldn’t do that, would he?”

Yamaguchi stared back at him, a frown visible on his face. However, the brunette said nothing as Goshiki awaited an answer. He stared silently with no answer to relieve the apprentice. Goshiki’s blood ran cold and he quickly took a step back.

“W-would he?” he squeaked.

“Goshiki,” the change in Yamaguchi’s voice gave him shivers. It was similar to the change Oikawa would make when he was serious. Goshiki dreaded that tone of voice. “This may scare you, but..,” he trailed off before shaking his head as if deciding he changed his mind. “I know things, things I sometimes wish I didn’t. I can see the future. That’s the reason I’m locked up in here, because I’m.., different. I’m not always right, but I usually am.”

“You were locked up for having powers-? Are you some type of mage? I thought those were only in legends,” the black haired knight asked.

“Er, something like that,” Yamaguchi hesitantly responded.

“W-wait,” Goshiki almost choked in realization. His eyes widened as he stared at Yamaguchi. He could feel his body begin to freeze up in some sort of panic. He never liked to look this vulnerable, even in front of those he trusted. He liked to be strong, he wanted to be a full fledged knight that was always at King Ushijima’s side like Tendo was, but this.., this was so real. “A-am I-I going t-to d-die?”

The only response he needed was the hesitant nod Yamaguchi gave him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Such a horrible ending and cliff hanger but I had no idea how else to end it. I cried while writing this because it was so horribly written, but also sad so there's that.  
> Anyways, I hope you liked it even though it's certainly not the best I've written. Thank you for reading!


	6. Suspicious Strangers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A missing knight wakes up to find himself in a strange, worn out room and injured. And who the hell is new guy?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaahh! I'm sorry it took so long! I have been so caught up in school and I can almost promise you guys that the next chapter will take even longer because I have so much work coming up. I'm sorry!   
> At least I believe this chapter was written slightly better than the chapter before, but while I was editing it I was not as proud of it as I was while writing it. Anyways! More characters and then we shall progress into the story a bit more and more things will become clear! So look forward to the upcoming chapters!

_ Where am I? _

Soft brown eyes flickered open to an unfamiliar room. He laid on what felt to be a poorly made bed, and the room appeared to be rather empty as if he was in a lone peasant's room. The walls and ceilings were wood which only confused him further. The place was nothing like he was used to. 

He sat up to get a better look around the room, flinching due to his aching body the uncomfortable bed had caused him. Finally, comforting his body at least somewhat, he brought himself to look around the room. His head ached worse of all, as if he had been hit in the head by something. In fact, he could not recall how or why he ended up here. He felt strange and uneasy in this place, and he felt much lighter than before.

He noticed that his armor had been stripped off which must of have caused the light feeling he felt. In fact, he noticed that his clothing had been replaced completely, and his original clothing was nowhere to be found in the small room he was in. 

Wherever he was, he did not feel safe. He looked around the room from the bed he sat in, in hopes of finding something that would tell him where he was. His weapons were missing as well which meant he had no way of defending himself. 

He came to the conclusion that he must have been kidnapped, but by who? His first thought was the resistance. However, they would have beaten him to death first chance they got. If this was the resistance’s doing, he would have already been dead. 

That still left the question, who kidnapped him? And who attacked him? Judging by the pain in his head, and the dizziness he was experiencing he must of been hit by something. He was sure none of the other knights would have done such a deed against him. 

He was still a young knight, however he had already finished his training. He was not stupid, yet he was aware that the chances of the other knights looking for him were very slim. He would have to escape himself if he wanted to get back. It was not that he did not believe the other knights were willing to find him, but that he knew of the resistance and the king’s safety was to be placed over his own. He acknowledged that. 

The young male quietly pulled himself out of bed. The unfamiliar rags he was given to wear scratched at his skin uncomfortably as he moved around. He was careful not to make much noise as he moved around, however the wooden floors creaked  underneath his feet, he had to be careful. He doubted whoever lived here was friendly, whether they were a part of the resistance or not. 

There was something wrong, something off about him. He paused on his way towards the door. There was a strange stinging feeling in his chest, yet it did not hurt. He had felt it since he stood up and began moving around. It was a strange feeling, nothing like he had ever felt before. Perhaps his determination to leave caused him to ignore the feeling until then.

Uneasy, he pulled down the collar of the shirt to get a better look at whatever it was. His eyes widened, and he felt his whole body freeze up in a panic. 

There were four, large scratch marks across his chest. They appeared deep, as if a large animal had pounced on him to cause them. Panicking, he took a step backwards, staring down at the scar. Whatever caused it was not a creature he ran into before. It was large, perhaps that of a bear. However, what are the chances of a bear randomly attacking him out in the village like that?

His legs were shaking, and he suddenly felt weak. The pain in his head was not helping as he tried to prevent himself from falling. 

The door suddenly was thrown open, causing the knight to jump back and fall. He was already fearful of his situation, add in the suspicious scar, and a startling noise and he was on the floor. It was pathetic in his case, a knight fearfully shaking on the floor, staring up at the unfamiliar male who entered the room. 

His sight was blurry, so he was unable to make out the person very well just yet. All he could tell was that he was a male, and he had blonde colored hair. He appeared to be holding something in his hands. The knight quickly raised up his arms to protect his face. He had no idea if this man was holding a weapon or not, but he was not going to wait and find out. He heard footsteps walk towards him, and that scared him further.

“Don’t come any closer!” he yelled. “I am a knight of the king and I will not hesitate to use force against you! Now explain to me where I am!” 

His sight was beginning to improve from his earlier panicked state, and he could sense the annoyance coming off of the male as he stopped where he was. “If you’re not hungry, you could have just said something,” the other grumbled. 

The knight blinked and lowered his arms. He began to look the male over hesitantly. The other wore similar rags to the ones he was currently wearing, and his hair was in fact short and blonde as he assumed through the blurry vision his panic gave him. He had a strange, wolf-like appearance to him, and he appeared extremely annoyed. The knight lifted a brow, “food?”

“Yeah,” the blonde rolled his eyes. 

“O-oh, it is not tainted is it?” 

“Why would I poison it? Because you’re annoying?”

The knight gritted his teeth in annoyance. Whoever this newcomer was, he could already tell they were not going to get along, good guy or otherwise. “Why did you bring me here? And were you the one who attacked me? What the hell is this scar I have? Do you know? What the hell attacked me?” he questioned. 

The other male let out a groan, “this is why I was hoping you were dead.” 

“So you were the one who attacked me!” he announced, jumping up to a standing position. “What did you do to me? Did you try to feed me to something? What the hell is this scar? Is it a bear?”

“Huh, so it’s already kicking in. You didn’t notice the bite on your shoulder, did you?” the other pointed towards his right shoulder.

His eyes widened, “what do you-” He pulled at the collar of his shirt and looked at the shoulder the other motioned towards. The bite was worse than the other scar. The teeth marks of an unknown animal left deep scars in his flesh. Tissue and muscle had been torn from its rightful placed, and in a few small areas it appeared some of the flesh was missing. It appeared infect, yet he could not feel it at all. “What the hell did you do?” he exclaimed.

The other shrugged, “you’ll find out soon enough.” His voice was low and quiet, and he grumbled everything he said. 

“Answer me! I will have you know I am a knight of King Tooru Oikawa! Shigeru Yahaba!” the knight growled. “Tell me what attacked me and left these scars!”

The blonde rolled his eyes and set the plate of food down on the wooden, beaten desk next to him. He glared back at Yahaba with no response. All he did was glare back, and it intimated Yahaba a bit. However, he himself was enraged and demanded answers. 

“I save you from the resistance and this is how you react? Your so-called ‘sweet’ appearance is only a bluff, huh?” the other finally grumbled. 

“T-the resistance?” Yahaba blinked. “The resistance did this?”

“Not exactly,” the suspicious man took a step forward, and the knight instantly jumped back. 

“What do you mean “not exactly”? What the hell did this?” he demanded. The blonde only shrugged, and that angered him even more. He gritted his teeth, “if you don’t answer me I’ll make your life hell you pathetic piece of shit! Now answer me! What the hell happened to me?”

The other blinked, staring at the other. Finally, he sighed and took a step backwards. “A werewolf,” he mumbled.

Yahaba raised a brow, “a what now?”

“You heard me,” he said back in annoyance. 

“I did not! Now answer me!” he snapped back. His hand balled up in a fist, glaring at the other. He was becoming sick and tired of this guy’s games. 

“It’s a curse,” the man started with a sigh.

_ Finally,  _ he was giving him an explanation. “A curse? What?” Yahaba asked puzzledly. 

“It gives a person the ability to turn into wolf,” he shrugged. “But sometimes they can’t always control themselves in that form.”

“Are you talking about a werewolf?” the brunette’s voice cracked. 

“Something like that.”

_ Wait _ , Yahaba froze. “Are you saying.., I was attacked by a werewolf? Then what the hell is going to happen to me?” he demanded. He was quite honestly horrified. If this curse worked the same way it did as the books he read… 

“You’ll become one at some point I guess,” the blonde answered. He was certainly not much of a speaker, and his way of speaking was rather rude.

The young knight stared at the other for a long moment, brown eyes wide with both confusion and horror. A werewolf? They were only creatures he read about in legends, right? Why was he attacked mid-day then? And how did he end up with this man? At this man’s place in fact. He stared for more than just a while, trying to process everything that had just happened and what he was told was going to happen. “You’re not this ‘werewolf’, are you?” he finally asked suspiciously. 

“And if I was?” Yahaba jumped back at the response. The blonde rolled his eyes, “I’m not going to hurt you. It would be pointless, anyway.”

“Then why the hell did you attack me in the first place?” Yahaba snapped.

His eyes averted away at the question. “It was an accident,” he mumbled. 

“How is  _ this _ an accident?” Yahaba glanced at his shoulder. “Do not tell me that you were only passing by and  _ accidentally  _ bit my shoulder. Take responsibility for your actions!” 

“Your head hurts, right?” the other said back. Yahaba blinked and laid a hand on the back of his head. He was not wrong, his head had been aching since he woke up on the bed. However, the bite mark and scratch marks had distracted him from the pain. 

“Yeah, so?” 

“I didn’t do that. You were attacked by some villagers, and knocked unconscious. In wolf form it’s hard to control myself so I guess I attacked you as well,” he shrugged. “It doesn’t matter now.”

Yahaba raised a brow, “you were trying to save me?” 

“Not really.”

The knight stared back, “but you did. Unless you have some other plan, which is still quite possible, you would not have brought me here unless you were trying to protect me.” Yahaba smirked at the other. Whoever this guy was, he pissed him off, but he was amusing to tease. 

The blonde glared at him silently. He did not bother speaking up against the other’s comments, which amused Yahaba even more. 

“So, what’s your name?” Yahaba asked, watching the blonde with newly found curiosity. 

The other looked at him suspiciously, ironic considering he was the one who basically kidnapped Yahaba. “My name?” he asked. “Why is that important?”

“So I can address you as a person, unless you don’t have a name. If that’s the case I could give you one,” Yahaba replied.

“I have a name,” the blonde grumbled. He walked pass Yahaba and sat down on the bed that the knight had earlier been lying on. Yahaba turned around to face him, not daring to allow this ‘werewolf’ to leave his sight even for a moment. “My name is Kentaro Kyotani since you care so much,” he answered after a long pause. 

Yahaba raised a brow, “Kyotani? Good enough for me. Now, when can I leave and go back to the castle? I have a job and friends that are likely worried.”

“You still want to leave even after you’ve acknowledged you’re a wolf now? Leave whenever, I don’t care,” Kyotani shrugged. 

Yahaba gritted his teeth, “I don’t even know where we are! You will have to bring me! And quit it with this wolf stuff!” The knight paused for a moment, looking at Kyotani. If this werewolf attack was true, and Kyotani as well as himself were now wolves, then there was no way he could go back. He risked the lives of people he cared about in the castle if he went back, and he highly doubted they would believe him until it was too late. 

_ Unless…  _

“Teach me everything. I want to know everything I need to in order to control this thing. You said that  _ sometimes _ you couldn’t control yourself in wolf form so that means you can most of the time, right?” the knight stepped closer to the other male. “Teach me everything you know.”

“What?” Kyotani looked confused. “First you don’t trust me and now you want me to teach you stuff? You’re strange.”

“I want you to train me!” Yahaba snapped. “If you won’t do it then I will have no choice but to stay with you for the rest of our miserable lives and I know you do not want that and neither do I! So train me and I can leave faster and go back to the castle!” 

“You can forget it. I’m not training you,” Kyotani concluded. 

The knight gritted his teeth, “I will tell the kingdom where you are! I will tell everyone about where you live and you will be slain before you have time to even consider fleeing! Teach me or die!” The majority of the words poured out of his mouth without a second thought. He was terrified, and of himself. Kyotani was his only chance of learning about himself, and now Kyotani was refusing to help. His state of panic had turned into angry out lashes towards the blonde, and thankfully it appeared to be working. 

Kyotani stared at Yahaba, not daring to speak as the knight continued to make more and more threats against him. Finally, when Yahaba’s furious yelling died down, he spoke. “Fine, I don’t know what you want me to do but fine. I’ll ‘train’ you I guess,” he averted his eyes away after answering. 

Yahaba went completely silent and blinked a few times as he watched Kyotani, expecting him to change his mind suddenly. However, Kyotani did not add or do anything that hinted to betrayal to what he had just promised. Trust between them was not an option, but if he was willing to learn from Kyotani about wolves… Well, then he supposed he would have to put some amount of trust in this man. 

"So, you'll do it?" he asked with relief. 

"Yeah, but we can't do anything until it actually happens so wait until later when you actually turn into a wolf against your will or something," Kyotani explained. He was thankfully speaking a lot more now, although it appeared to be against his will. "It's also pretty painful." 

"Painful?" Yahaba yelped. "What's with this? Is everything about having the ability to turn into a wolf painful?" 

"It is a curse," the blonde shrugged. "You get used to it." 

"But, could we not use it to our advantage and help people?" Yahaba asked.

"Not when you have the urge to eat them," Kyotani said back. 

Yahaba frowned, "then we'll fix that." 

"It's genetics, you can't fix that," Kyotani rolled his eyes. 

"Well, with your help, we'll work through it together. We'll teach ourselves to listen to each other and prevent those urges from happening. I'll help you and you'll help me," Yahaba decided. It was a dangerous plan, especially if Kyotani was untrustworthy. However, he was going to have to suck it up if he wanted to go back to the castle.

Kyotani looked at him suspiciously again, “and now you want to ‘help me’ too? What’s with you?”

“I just want to go home, and safely. If you and I work together, I’m sure we can almost guarantee that it will happen. Therefore, even if we do not like it, you will help me learn and in return I will help train you as well,” Yahaba announced. “It’s a win for the both of us, so don’t bother refusing.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My friends came to me with the idea of putting werewolves in my story, and although it may be a bit out of place, I do not believe it is too far considering I did put witches in this. I thought it was a nice side story type of touch.   
> Also, feel free to make predictions and what-not! Perhaps even some ideas! I do have this story pretty firmly planned out, however I am willing to add in a few ideas if you guys would like.   
> Thank you for reading!


	7. Confession

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Iwaizumi returns and reports some shocking news to Oikawa  
> Meanwhile, Kageyama has something to tell Hinata.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am finally updating this after all this time! Whoo hoo! Sorry about taking forever, I had such horrible writer's block for the longest time with everything I tried to write. Thank my friends for getting me back into writing.  
> Also, you may have noticed that this story was rated up from Teen to Mature. I was told to rate it up because there are a few adult topics that are brought up later on in the chapters. No, it is not rated up because of this chapter. This is likely one of the most light hearted chapters. I only rated it up to be safe.  
> Once again as always, sorry for any editing issues and if anything's confusing please let me know <3

“Iwa-chan! There you are! I have been so worried!” the king yelled, quickly making his way to the formerly missing knight. “Where have you been? I was almost positive that Ushiwaka captured you!”

Iwaizumi almost fell over by the strong embrace he received from Oikawa as the other wrapped his arms around him. The way Oikawa was clinging to him was almost suffocating. “Damn it, Oikawa! Get off!”

Oikawa whined, but took a step back. “But I missed you! I have been up all night waiting for you and you’re back so late! What happened? Did Ushiwaka capture you, but you escaped? If that’s the case-”

“I went for a walk, I didn’t realize how late it was when I decided to go back,” Iwaizumi explained.

 _Is that all you did?_ Oikawa stared at Iwaizumi for a moment, waiting for the dark haired knight to explain himself further, but the explanation he expected never came. “Where did you go?” he finally asked.

Iwaizumi paused for a moment, “I was only wandering for the most part, but I came across a small farm a little ways south of the main village-”

“Can we continue this in my room?” Oikawa suddenly interrupted with a grin. He wanted to know everything that happened on this ‘walk’ Iwaizumi claimed he took. He was not dumb, although he pretended to be in a way of deceiving others to believe he was. He knew that Iwaizumi was hiding something from him and he also knew Iwaizumi was aware of that, so he should have expected to be questioned.

Iwaizumi rolled his eyes in annoyance. “Fine,” he mumbled and followed the king to his room. Once they entered the room, Oikawa quickly closed the door and hopped onto the bed. He looked up at Iwaizumi from his laying position and patted the bed to motion for Iwaizumi to sit down. Once the knight did sit down, Oikawa laid his head on his lap.

“You can continue now, Iwa-chan. I want to know everything. What did you see? Who did you see? You already said that you went for a walk and saw a small farm, but why did you go for a walk in the first place? A king should know where all of his subordinates are,” Oikawa grinned, looking up at Iwaizumi.

“Since when did you start acting like an actual king?”

“How mean! I’ve done many king related things!”

“Yeah, sure,” Iwaizumi rolled his eyes. Despite acting the way he usually did with Oikawa, it almost appeared forced to the brunette. There was a small smile that curved Iwaizumi’s lips, and that bothered the king.

“So what happened?”

“On the farm? Nothing much. I did see someone who looked familiar, but I’m sure my eyes were playing some sort of trick on me. Besides, _that person_ _is dead_ , right?” despite his convincing words, Iwaizumi did not appear sure of his own words. Oikawa raised a brow, watching Iwaizumi closely.

“That person?” Oikawa pulled himself up from Iwaizumi’s lap and into a sitting position next to the knight. He put on an innocent, curious expression as he waited for a reply. It was not always easy to deceive Iwaizumi, but he had done it before so it was not at all impossible if he was careful not to make it obvious.

The black haired knight shook his head a bit. “You would never believe me if I told you who I thought I saw on that farm. It must have been some type misidentification, so try not to worry too much about it,” he answered.

That was not what Oikawa wanted to hear. He wanted a name. He _needed_ a name. “But who do you think you saw?” he asked again.

“Kageyama,” Iwaizumi sighed out. “I have no clue whether it was him or not. I thought for sure he died. He went out by himself and got himself killed, or something along those lines, right? That’s what I have always been told.”

Oikawa frowned, reading over Iwaizumi’s expression for any sign that he was messing with him. When he did not find anything, he grinned from ear to ear, “Tobio-chan? It’s been forever since I’ve seen him! If there is any chance he is alive, then we should search for him immediately and bring him home! I am sure Kindaichi and Kunimi would be thrilled to have him back!” He almost fooled himself.

Iwaizumi looked confused, “wait, but you hated him back when we were kids did you not?”

“Things change, Iwa-chan! Besides, I miss having someone I can tease other than you. I will set out and search for him immediately!” Oikawa laughed purely, yet with noticable uneasiness. He jumped up from the bed and began to gather his things.

“Wait, right now? It is dangerous for you to go out in general, but going out at night is a death wish.., are you sure you do not want someone else to go with you? I can come if you would li-”

“Nonsense! I will go out in disguise. If I brought even one knight with me, I would be figured out! I will go alone,” Oikawa grinned at Iwaizumi. “Do not worry about me, I will come back as soon as I find Tobio-chan, promise!”

Iwaizumi looked unsure, but nodded, “if you are sure…”

“Of course I am sure! I will put on my disguise and be off!” Oikawa began to undress himself frantically.

Iwaizumi looked at him suspiciously, however he not say anything. Standing up, he sighed, “I am going to check on Hanamaki and Matsukawa and then I’m going to sleep. Be careful, Oikawa.”

“I will, I will! Do not worry!”

________________________________________

“Hinat-” Kageyama began to speak, but the words were caught in his throat just as he began to speak. He bit down on his lip, going over the words once more in his head. However, he was unable to say them due to some unknown, invisible force.

The ginger male looked up at him as they continued their walk. A look of question sparkled in his wide, amber eyes. "What is it, Kageyama?" he asked. Kageyama was not prepared for this.

The raven haired prince cleared his throat nervously as he once again went over the words in his head. "I know we have only known each other for about a year now, and that we are always arguing, but-" he was interrupted.

"What's with serious tone of voice, Bakeyama? Are you going to die or something? You never speak like this," Hinata tilted his head to the side.

Kageyama stopped walking, biting down on his lip in frustration. Hinata stopped slightly in front of him, looking at him with a confused, yet somewhat mocking way. “Dumbass! Listen to me!” he snapped.

Hinata did not even flinch, he was used to Kageyama’s frustrated yelling by now. “Well you were beating around the bush! I was only trying to get a forward answer! What is it you want to tell me anyway?” the shorter male huffed, crossing his arms.

The former prince gritted his teeth, glaring down at the daring amber gaze. “Fine! I’ll tell you! I l-li-lik..,” he choked on his words. Was this too sudden? Was this too random? It was true the two have been rooming with each other for about a year now, but Kageyama still continuously struggled when it came to socializing properly, not to mention it took a relatively long time for he and Hinata to finally get along with each other to at least some extent.

"You like something?" Hinata was confused. "Like what? Milk?"

"Damn it! No, dumbass! That's not what I'm trying to say!" the black haired male loudly protested, glaring at the smaller male. The ginger was so stupidly puzzled, Kageyama thought about giving up on telling him.

"Then what is it?" Hinata glared back.

"U-uh," he stumbled once again. How else was he meant to tell him without speaking it? Obviously, he was getting nowhere with this approach, and considering that both he and Hinata were a bit slow when it came to figuring most problems out he was likely screwed.

"Kageyama," Hinata suddenly interrupted his wild thoughts. Blinking, he looked down at Hinata, he was now the confused one. "Does this have something to do with me?"

“What? How would you know that?” Kageyama instantly became defensive.

“Because why else would you come to me about something?” the ginger rolled his eyes. “You usually talk to Sugawara-san, don’t you?”

“Well even if I wanted to speak to him, he’s not here currently,” he defended himself. _Why am I defending myself when he’s spot on?_ Kageyama wanted to kick himself for allowing him to get in this situation. He regretted even bothering with the idea of confession.

“So? You could wait,” it sounded as if Hinata did not even want to know what it was. That hurt a bit.

“I’m not a patient person,” Kageyama grumbled. He decided to try again, for real this time. “Hinata, I have two things to confess to you,” he said almost immediately as if he were in a rush. _Two things? What else did I-_

_Oh, that._

“Huh?” Hinata was back to being confused. “So you do have something to tell me?”

Finally, after such a long struggle, after all that effort of thinking about what to say, he decided what he was going to say. He decided that it was now or never, and even if he was rejected, even if Hinata despised him, mocked him for it, Kageyama would have at least been able to get it off his chest.

Despite how much he struggled with the idea, he accepted rejection.

“Hinata, I think I l-l-love you?” he stated it as a question, not that he meant it to come out that way. His face turned red, not because of the confession, but because of how he managed to mess that time up as well.

The look on Hinata’s face killed him. His amber eyes were wide with disbelief, his mouth was opened in a small ‘o’, and his body appeared to have tensed up. That was it, Kageyama regretted it. He should have kept his mouth shut. He should have remained quiet. He should have-

-But what would have happened then? He would have been stressed out, over thinking a confession as he already had done over and over again. His pride was damaged, yes, but everyone always accused him of having a big ego, right? He was not going to deny it, and he was a former prince, so he had the right to have one. However, maybe allowing himself to be damaged for a bit would help bring that down a bit. After all, he wanted to fix it. He could not allow himself to end up like _him_.

“Hey, Bakeyama,” Hinata’s voice interrupted his thoughts, and Kageyama feared the worse. He could not even bring himself to be mad at the nickname used on him, he was so scared. “Do you want to…”

“I don’t expect you to say anything back, so don’t worry. I already know,” those words stung. Still, Kageyama held onto some ounce of hope, even if his mouth continued to betray him.

“You didn’t let me finish!” Hinata huffed. “I was going to ask you something! Do you want to run away with me or not?”

Kageyama blinked, “what?”

“Run away with me! We can leave the rule of King Tooru Oikawa for good!” Hinata suddenly grinned. “Because I like you too, I want you to run away with me.”

The black haired male looked around, checking if anyone else was nearby or listening in on their conversation. “But, what about everyone else?” he asked.

Hinata’s smile disappeared and was replaced with a sadden look. “I asked a few of them, but they refuse to leave. They want to stay here because they believe it’s where they belong..,” he answered. He furrowed his eyebrows and looked at Kageyama determinedly. “Don’t get me wrong, Kageyama. I don’t want to leave just because of the kingdom. I don’t want to leave because I’m being selfish, I just..,” he trailed off and looked down. “I don’t belong here…”

Kageyama’s eyes widened, “what? What are you talking about? Is there somebody on this farm making you feel that way? Because they’re-”

“No, I really do not belong here… I don’t think I can tell you just yet, but I don’t belong here, I belong somewhere else. It’s just- I-” Hinata stumbled over his own words, constantly repeating himself. He finally took a pause, thinking over his words carefully. That was rare. Hinata normally did not bother worrying about what he was going to say. “Do you promise not to hate me if I do tell you?”

“Of course not. It can't be that bad,” Kageyama rolled his eyes. Hinata was overreacting, whatever it was. “Besides, I have something else to tell you as well.”

Hinata looked up at him with interest glimmering in those amber eyes. “Something else?” he asked.

“Yeah,” he took in a deep breath. “But, you can explain your problem first,” he nodded to Hinata, telling him to continue. It would be easier for the both of them if they had something else to confess. Kageyama had no idea what could possibly be bothering Hinata so much, but he knew that due to how much Hinata hated royalty, his secret would cause the most reaction.

Hinata hesitated before shaking his head. “You say it first, you were the one who started the whole confession thing anyway,” he decided.

Why did he feel like he was the one being pushed around? He was the prince, he should be making the orders. “No, I'll go second,” he answered.

“You were the one who brought it up!” Hinata protested.

“Well you're the one who wants to run away!” Kageyama retorted.

“I have my reasons!” the ginger snarled.

“Then what are they?” he replied back.

“I-I..,” Hinata looked away in defeat. “F-fine! How about this! We’ll say them at the same time! And don’t you dare try to stay silent because I’ll stop if I notice you’re not saying it with me!”

It was the best option he was going to get. Plus if he said it quiet enough.., “fine.”

The ginger nodded to Kageyama and raised his hand. “Okay, on the count of three! One,” he raised one finger, “two,” he raised another finger, “three!”

Both opened their mouths, ready to announce what their secrets were. Both uneasy, yet both so determined. Finally, they yelled in unison of each other, their eyes closed shut tightly.

_“I’m a Prince!”_

Suddenly, both opened their eyes, staring at each other wider than they ever had.

_“Wahh?”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can't write fluffy things for the life of me, I'm really sorry. I'm terrible at writing as Kageyama because his character is so different from what I'm used to, but I tried my best!  
> I hope you enjoyed! I am already well off in writing chapter eight, so it should be out a bit faster.


	8. A Broken Crown

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oikawa leaves the castle for the first time in his life and meets a rather refreshing stranger on his journey.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back! My long, annoying writer's block is finally gone (for now) and I'm back to trying a bunch! I guess school somehow has me thinking a lot more than how I was in the summer. I am so so happy to be back and continue this story because I put so much effect in it that I can't just let it go to waste. Thank you all for being patient.   
> I hope you enjoy!

It truly was a lovely night. After years of being locked up in that boring castle, Oikawa had begun to grow used to a life indoors that he never bothered to leave. However, this short trip outside of the castle grounds gave him another idea. 

The stars were lovely, such things he could only ever watch from his window since he was a child. The poor, old looking village could not compare to the beautiful sight of the sky. A smile began to dance around on his face as he took a break from his search and watched the stars. When he was young, he was allowed in the garden, but never at night, and he had always been too scared to risk getting in trouble when Iwaizumi suggested they sneak out to watch the stars. Despite what anyone else may say, he was a bit of goody-two-shoes when he was young.

“They're lovely at this time of night, aren't they?” a voice asked, interrupting his thoughts. However, Oikawa surprisingly did not mind. 

“They are.., I've never seen them like this before,” he confessed. 

“I agree, tonight is exceptional. It makes me wonder if the village will finally make it through one night without a death,” the new comer said hopeful. 

Finally, Oikawa turned to the other. He too wore a hooded cloak, but the hood did not sit on top of his head to hide himself and instead laid flat on the back of neck. His silver hair seemed to glow in the moonlight, and on his pale face Oikawa quickly picked up a pleasant smile. “A night without a death?  What do you mean?” he asked with a slight tilt of his head. 

“Death happens all the time in this village. Do you not live around here?” the silver haired male turned to him as well. 

“Oh! No, I do not. I am just simply passing through. I am a traveler you see,” Oikawa lied. 

“Oh! A traveler?” the other grinned. “I've never met one that was not from around here! You will have to tell me about your adventures sometime if we ever see each other again! Ah, just a warning, walking around this late at night is not safe. There is a violent resistance who are beginning to make themselves known along with pickpocketers, thieves, and pretty much anything dangerous you can imagine. If you can think of it, we probably have it,” he laughed lightly. 

Oikawa uncomfortably laughed along, “is that so? Then I'll be careful. So, may I ask you why you are out all by yourself when you live in such a dangerous village as you say?” 

“Ah, yes you may. I work this late,” he answered vaguely.

“Work? Work for what? Working at night is unusual for village folk, am I wrong?” Oikawa asked. 

“How far have you traveled? Do you not know what a prostitute is?” the silver haired male asked uncomfortably. “Because that's exactly what I am. I guess that explains why you're still talking to me. Prostitutes are the lowest of the low.” 

“H-huh? W-wha-” he stammered out. If he was honest, he was about to ask  _ what _ exactly a prostitute was. The word was foreign to him, perhaps because he has never met one before. Or perhaps maybe it was due to his innocent ignorance from living in a castle all his life. “Guess I didn't notice? It's not like that matters right?” 

The other stared at him for a moment, his golden eyes a mixture of confusion and surprise. Suddenly, a graceful laugh left his lips and he nodded, “maybe you’re right.”

Oikawa sighed in relief and nodded, “of course.” 

“But as I said, I’m suppose to be working,” he gave the king another gracious smile. “Maybe I’ll see you again?”

“Perhaps,” Oikawa smiled back. The mysterious other left, instantly disappearing in the dark. “We’ll have to see,” he whispered to himself. Whoever he was, he certainly had a pleasant aura surrounding him. It was certainly refreshing from the stressful situation Oikawa was in currently. 

_ I never got his name, _ the brunette frowned. However, he decided not to worry too much about it. If he was given a name he would have been expected to give a name, and he was not prepared with a fake name quite yet. It would have been too much trouble anyway.  _ I have another mission for now, I can not be bothered over being unable to get a name.  _

After one more glance at the sky, Oikawa set off once again. He had no idea where the farm was located other than south of the village, but he refused to allow Iwaizumi to go with him on the short journey. Iwaizumi would only cause a crowd, going by himself was the best plan Oikawa had at the moment. 

Perhaps he should have asked if the silver haired male knew where the farm was. It was too late for that now, he screwed himself over at this point. 

He looked forward, catching sight of another humanoid figure close by. Maybe he was making his way towards the farm after all. There would not be this many people out and about at this time of night if there was not any shelter nearby, right? 

The king sped up his pace. The other was sitting down on what appeared to be a large rock, and upon further inspection, he found that the unknown person was a male. “Excuse me! I think I may need your help!” 

The male looked in the direction of the brunette. “With what? Finding the farm?” he asked. 

Oikawa blink, caught off guard by the peasant’s truthful assumption. “Uhh, yeah?” he questionably answered. 

“Everyone wants to live there nowadays,” he sighed. “Continue straight ahead and you'll find it. You're going the right direction.” 

The voice sounded strained and tired, and Oikawa wondered why. It was then that he took a good look at the other, and his eyes widened. 

Light hair was all he could really tell in the dim moonlight, but what caught him off guard were the bandages on his face which covered his eyes. “Hold on, do you even know what you're talking about?” 

“I  _ have _ been to the farm a few times before,” the other answered. “I should know which way to go, blind or not.” 

Oikawa rolled his eyes and continued to walk in the direction he was told to, ignoring the blind male. If he did not find this farm within a few more strides, he was walking back and calling him out on it. 

Thankfully, a building did come into sight as of right on cue, and Oikawa allow his shoulders to rest from being so tense. Becoming lost was not a concern anymore, or at least for right now. 

Once he made it to the ranch, he looked around for anyone who may have still remained outside. Scuffing when he did not see anyone, he made his way over to a door where he could assume people were living based off of the lantern light. He knocked on the door twice, and there was no answer. He knocked twice again after a short pause, and there  was still no answer. Face contorted in a scorn, he knocked impatiently again, much louder than the first few times. He was about to knock again when he heard what he assumed to be foot steps. Oikawa replaced the scorn with a pleasant smile, waiting for the door to be opened. 

The door finally was opened by a black haired male with curly hair. In fact, he looked familiar. Oikawa tensed up, praying his disguise was not easy to see through. Up until now he had been dealing with people who have never seen him before, but this person, he looked like the merchant Iwaizumi allowed into the castle  _ without  _ Oikawa's permission. 

“Hello! I'm a traveler of a different country! I was wondering if I could speak to a person by the name of Tobio Kageyama? I heard he lives here,” Oikawa smiled, praying the other did not recognize him.  _ His name was Akaashi, right? _

Akaashi looked suspiciously over him, tension arising once again. “He does, but who are you?” 

_He's the defensive type_ _great,_ Oikawa mentally groaned. “I'm a cousin of his. I'm not sure if he will remember me or not, but I thought since I was passing through I might as well greet him,” the brunette lied. “I found out where he was from his brother,” he quickly added. 

“Kageyama doesn't have a brother,” Akaashi furrowed his eyebrows as if he was waiting for Oikawa to crack. 

“He does. Believe me, he does. However, he and his brother do not get along all that well,” Oikawa laughed. “You could ask him if you want to, but I wouldn't recommend it.”  

Akaashi looked unsure, but he nodded nevertheless. “Wait here, I'll check if he's awake and wishes to speak to you,” the merchant ordered. 

“Of course, that is fine,” Oikawa smiled up at him from behind the hood he wore. “I will wait out here for him.” 

The dark haired teen gave him one more wary look before stepping back and closing the door. He did not once turn his back on Oikawa until the door was closed.  _ He's being much too paranoid. I wouldn't hurt Tobio-chan, _ Oikawa mused. 

The young king sighed boredly as he waited for Kageyama to come outside. He hoped Kageyama would come out, or else the whole journey would have been a waste. He had to deal with so many harsh strangers and even risked his life a few times just to see his beloved half brother. It was very much unlike Oikawa. Very much unlike him indeed. 

The door next to him suddenly opened, and he happily turned around to face the newcomer. Sure enough, it was a confused looking Kageyama. “Are you the person who asked to speak to me?” the black haired teen asked hesitantly. 

“Oh come now, do you not trust me?” Oikawa grinned. “Follow me, I would like to speak in private. It's about your brother.” 

Kageyama instantly nodded and began to follow Oikawa as the brunette led him away from the structure. The king began to hum quietly as they continued to walk towards the woods when Kageyama suddenly stopped. Confused, Oikawa turned around to face Kageyama. “What is it?” 

“T-Tooru?” Kageyama stuttered out, taking a step back in realization. “What do you want?” 

“Technically, you lost your right to call me that when you left,” Oikawa mused. A playful smirked danced around on his lips. Kageyama remained still, not daring to make a sound. “Oh wait, Tobio-chan did not run away because he wanted to, did he? He was threatened. He was given the choice to run or die, right?” the brunette hummed. “But nobody knows that except for the person who threatened him.” 

“To- Oikawa, what do you want?” Kageyama demanded. “I swear I am not going to take the kingdom from you. I have no reason to, it's yours.” 

“How can I be sure of that, Tobio-chan?” the older hummed. 

Kageyama paused for a moment, shifting a bit in an uncomfortable manner. Oikawa raised a brow at the action. 

“Tobio-chan?” he asked again. 

The younger bit at his lower lip, “I-I have something to look forward to here. The k-kingdom doesn't matter anymore.” 

“Oh? And what's that?” the brunette mused.

“I fell in love, Tooru.” an unusual yet cute smile graced the raven’s face. “I fell in love and we plan on leaving. You won't have to worry about me anymore. I'll be out of your hair from now on. Just let me leave and everything can be over. That's what you wanted right?” 

_ Love? In love?  _ Oikawa froze in place, staring at his younger half brother. His brother of all people found love? His brother? The man who was suppose to be lonely for the rest of his days found love? Love was such a bizarre thought. Being in love was even more bizarre. What even was love? Oikawa wanted to know. 

No, wait. That day when Iwaizumi reported the news about Kageyama still being alive he was in such an excellent mood. Was Iwaizumi in love with Kageyama? Was Iwaizumi going to run away with Kageyama? Was Iwaizumi going to leave him? 

Oikawa could not breathe. His body was shaking uncontrollably as he tried to maintain control of it. The plan was to kill Kageyama, to rid of him once and for all. But if Kageyama was to leave, what would be the point of that? However, if this person he loved was Iwaizumi, Oikawa could not allow him to live. 

“So you're in love? With who? A peasant? A thug? Who could you possibly fall in love within a place like this? I would hope you did not fall in love with someone I know, that could end badly for you,” the brunette mused. 

When Kageyama flinched, that was all Oikawa needed for an answer. The shaking suddenly stopped, a strange, rather scary calmness overtook his body. He smiled lightly, and then took a step forward. 

He revealed the knife he had brought with him and chose to fulfill its intent. He lunged at him, leaving his younger  _ half _ brother little to no time to react to the situation. He stabbed Kageyama, in the chest, as deep as possible. Oikawa let go of the knife after inserting it in its victim, his hands stained red. Kageyama took a step back before falling to his knees, he gasped for air and grabbed at his chest as if he could seal the internal wound. 

Oikawa clicked his tongue and bent down to get a better look at Kageyama. Deciding it was not enough, Oikawa grabbed Kageyama’s hair in the process. “Now, who was it that you fell in love with,  _ Tobio-chan _ ?” he mocked. “Someone I know well? Or maybe just an acquaintance of mine?” he snickered darkly. “I suppose it does not matter now.” 

The brunette removed the knife and allowed Kageyama to fall face down in a puddle of his own blood. The younger man struggled to get up and reached for Oikawa, as if Oikawa would find it in his heart to help him. 

“I-I'm-” Kageyama choked out. 

“Do not strain yourself,  _ Tobio-chan _ . You will lose breath faster,” the brunette interrupted. 

“S-so-sorry..,” the younger whimpered. “Pl-please d-don’t..,” he was gasping. It surprised Oikawa that he managed to survive for so long. Then again, it was just a knife wound. Kageyama was using up too much strength to even possibly live however. 

“Don’t what,  _ Tobio-chan _ ?” he sneered.

Kageyama gasped for air, his eyes watering. He was dying, obviously, yet this was one of the very few times Oikawa had ever seen him cry. If he was completely honest, it took him off guard. 

The young man fought for life for what felt to be forever as Oikawa watched him, waiting for him to die. Finally, the time came, and Kageyama’s body finally stopped struggling against itself. The brunette let out a sigh of relief. 

“Good thing nobody came out to check on him,” he mused. Yet, he felt a rather empty feeling about this. Why did he kill Kageyama? What was the point? Then he remembered his reasoning, yet he felt hollow still. 

Of course it had to do with Kageyama possibly coming back and killing him instead, it was to protect himself, but there was so much more. Kageyama found love, but how? How could someone like Kageyama love and be loved? Why was Kageyama always the favorite in all of this? Why did he get all the attention by  _ Oikawa’s _ parents? Why was he meant to lead the kingdom from the start?

_ Why should Tobio-chan be allowed to have what I can’t? _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I still feel like this chapter came out bad but I guess I'm a bit rusty. I'm really sorry to all of you who dislike angst, but this is just the starting point.   
> Also, yes this chapter was named after a song aha, typical I know.


End file.
